Droves of people came to the Madison Metropolitan School District Board meeting Monday evening to express their opinions on the board's Oct. 8 decision to mandate the playing of the national anthem each day rather than the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance.
The board reconsidered its decision after receiving thousands of e-mails, letters and phone calls about its vote, which many people interpreted as a ban on the pledge.
The public hearing on reconsideration lasted well into the night. As of press time, the board had not yet taken a vote on overturning last week's decision.
In order to comply with state statutes passed in the last budget cycle, public and private Madison schools must offer students the chance to participate in the pledge or anthem once a day.
Assistant Schools Superintendent Roger Price estimated turnout at 800 to 1,200 people at Madison Memorial High School, 201 S. Gammon Rd. Audio was fed from the auditorium into the cafeteria for the benefit of those who could not fit into the overflowing auditorium.
Shortly before the meeting began, members of the audience spontaneously began reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, which was followed by clapping and chants of 'USA.'
Pre-registered members of the public were allotted three minutes each to give their opinions. Price said 233 people were registered to speak.
The evenly divided crowd cheered and booed after nearly every speaker's comments.
Several students from Madison schools spoke before the board.
'This is just another thing which divides one student from another,' one student said.
Though students are given the option not to participate under the new ordinance, some students said they are forced to take part in the anthem due to peer pressure.
'Do I feel pressured to participate? Absolutely,' another student testified.
Jim Skaggs, president of the Madison Teachers Inc., a local teachers' union, said the debate has produced good discussion in his classroom.
'You have to learn to stand up for your beliefs,' he said.
Many speakers objected to a school-sponsored pledge on religious grounds, specifically mentioning the pledge's 'under God' phrase in their testimony.
Others at the meeting said they felt religion was not an issue when it came to patriotism.
'If you don't like the words 'under God,' don't say it,' community member Dan Neviaser said.
While one speaker questioned the ramifications of allowing students to 'pledge allegiance to a stinking piece of cloth,' others expressed more moderate views. Several stressed the need for increased tolerance.
Madison schools need to 'concentrate on teaching tolerance for people with different points of view,' according to speaker Amy Fuelleman.
As of 9:15 Monday evening, only 91 of the 233 registered speakers had finished speaking.
'We owe it to the public to allow them to have input now,' school board member Ray Allen said. 'They didn't make us have to be here all night, we made ourselves have to be here all night.'
Former Madison Mayor Paul Soglin said the crowd neglected to acknowledge the 'wonderful job [the board] has done in running Madison schools.'
'The effort to comply with the statute and try to keep public schools neutral was very difficult,' he said. 'It was a time bomb.'
While members of the public addressed the school board in the auditorium, a separate group assembled in the school's courtyard to launch a drive to recall several members of the board.
Led by Madison tourism consultant Bill Geist, the group plans to circulate petitions calling for the recalls of board president Calvin Williams, as well as members Carol Carstensen and Bill Keys.
Former U.S. Rep. Scott Klug, who was named honorary chair of the effort, said the recalls are necessary because the board no longer represents the interests of the community.
'If they didn't know what they were doing last week, what other decisions are they making when they don't have a clue'? Klug said.
