By David N. Bass for The Carolina Journal
State lawmakers in the NC House of Representatives are moving forward a bill that would require schools to incorporate daily recitations of the Pledge of Allegiance and ensure prominent display of the United States and North Carolina flags.
If passed, House Bill 186 mandates that local school boards, charter schools, regional schools, and laboratory schools will be required to schedule the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance within the first hour of the instructional day. Schools are also expected to prominently display both the US and NC flags in classrooms where available.
The measure makes clear that participation in the Pledge remains voluntary and that no individual is compelled to stand, salute, or recite.
Beyond the classroom, HB 186 targets governing bodies within the educational system. The NC State Board of Education, along with the leadership of public school units, will be required to start all regular and special meetings with the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance.
“A lot of times in education, we talk about the mental health and things that children are going through; and I think the reason a lot of times we have issues is because our foundations are not where they need to be at,” said Rep. Brian Biggs, R-Randolph, a primary sponsor of the bill. “And I think things like our pledge and our Constitution, our North Carolina constitution and our US Constitution, are those foundations that make us who we are, that make us proud of our country and proud of our nation.”
Biggs added that the bill is necessary because some entities are not reciting the Flag Code Pledge amended by Congress and signed into law in 1954. He pointed to a State Board of Education meeting from July when member John Blackburn used a pared down version of the Pledge, saying, “I pledge allegiance to my flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation indivisible with liberty and justice for all.”
“I will promise you the majority when you start messing with documents like our pledge, like our Constitution, and you take God and country out of them, you will have students leaving your schools,” Biggs said. “You will have parents pulling their kids. There’s no need for this. That pledge should not be political.”
HB 186 passed the House K-12 Education Committee by voice vote and now heads to the House Judiciary Committee.
The preceding article originally appeared on March 5, 2025 at The Carolina Journal’s website and is made available here for educational purposes only. This constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17 U.S.C. section 106A-117 of the U.S. Copyright Law. Any views or opinions expressed here are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Carolina Leadership Coalition.
