Fargo School Board reads Pledge of Allegiance once again at Tuesday night’s meeting

FARGO, N.D. (Valley News Live) - The Fargo School Board started their August 23 regular meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance once again.

The board only started saying it back in April, but voted to do away with it to allow more times for their meetings. This caused local and national backlash. Some members said they had been pressured by people who they do not represent to put it back in place, as they received threatening messages from people out-of-state.

The public was able to make statements at the meeting, with a speaking time of four minutes. One speaker claimed the board made them a national embarrassment and quoted board member Seth Holden, who originally pitched the board start saying the Pledge, twice. The speaker also called for Holden to resign from the board.

Another speaker apologized to the board for what happened and proposed they hire security to protect themselves. After the threatening messages to members and their personal safety, she says it should be taken into consideration.

The third speaker claims the board chose not to listen to the people. He says they were told not to take the Pledge out but ignored their calls to keep it. The speaker also asked Holden to resign from the board.

The fourth speaker, a veteran, says Americans have fought and died for the flag, and to never kneel before the Flag. He says their job is to make sure they give kids the best education possible. He says to not bring politics into the meetings.

The last speaker says he would piggyback off the previous speaker and recommends focusing on education.

The board then went on to have their regular meeting.