Catastrophic Lullaby
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- Posted: Wed, 03 Dec 2014 00:22:03 +0000
The Story:
Source: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/10/us-air-force-sergeant-reenlist-god-oath
The Follow-up:
Source: http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Military/2014/0918/Air-Force-does-quick-about-face-on-So-help-me-God
Some topics to help promote discussion (but feel free to think of your own):
Quote:
US law requires ‘so help me God’ to be included in the oath, though its implementation is left to each branch of the military
The US air force has told an atheist airman he must swear his re-enlistment oath to God or he will not be allowed to reenlist, according to the American Humanist.
The airman, who is stationed at Creech air force base in Nevada, has not been identified. The service said he has until November to swear the oath required of all servicemembers, which concludes with the phrase “so help me God”.
The American Humanist Association said in a letter to the air force (pdf) last week that the officer was told that he either had to say the phrase or leave the service. The airman has previously crossed out the phrase in a written contract and refused to say it out loud, and was told August 25 that the contract would therefore not be accepted for re-enlistment.
The group believes the oath as currently required is a violation of the airman’s constitutional rights under the first amendment and demanded that he be allowed to re-enlist without using the phrase.
US law requires the phrase to be included in the oath given to all servicemembers, though its implementation is left to each branch of the military. Air force members could omit the phrase until the service updated its directive on the oath in October 2013. Before that, the instruction for the oath included the phrase: “Airmen may omit the words ‘so help me God,’ if desired for personal reasons.”
The air force has said it cannot change the rule without congressional action.
“The right to omit these words is not only recognized by the courts, but has also been recognized by the air force itself,” the AHA said in the letter. AHA lawyer Monica Miller said the group will sue if he is not allowed to reenlist without including “so help me God” in the oath.
The air force did not respond to the Guardian’s request for comment, but told Air Force Times that the airman has until November, when his terms of service expire, to swear his oath with the phrase included.
Air force spokesperson Rose Richeson also told the news site that the air force is asking the Defense Department to review the rule. “The opinion will help inform the future decision,” Richeson said.
The full text of the oath is:
“I, ____________________, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.”
This battle echoes still brewing controversies over the inclusion of God in US government-sanctioned settings.
The inclusion of “under God” in the pledge of allegiance, which is recited in some public schools across the US, is routinely challenged. The most prominent challenge came in 2004, when a father’s lawsuit against the inclusion of the phrase made its way to the supreme court. The nation’s highest court overturned the ruling on procedural grounds.
The US air force has told an atheist airman he must swear his re-enlistment oath to God or he will not be allowed to reenlist, according to the American Humanist.
The airman, who is stationed at Creech air force base in Nevada, has not been identified. The service said he has until November to swear the oath required of all servicemembers, which concludes with the phrase “so help me God”.
The American Humanist Association said in a letter to the air force (pdf) last week that the officer was told that he either had to say the phrase or leave the service. The airman has previously crossed out the phrase in a written contract and refused to say it out loud, and was told August 25 that the contract would therefore not be accepted for re-enlistment.
The group believes the oath as currently required is a violation of the airman’s constitutional rights under the first amendment and demanded that he be allowed to re-enlist without using the phrase.
US law requires the phrase to be included in the oath given to all servicemembers, though its implementation is left to each branch of the military. Air force members could omit the phrase until the service updated its directive on the oath in October 2013. Before that, the instruction for the oath included the phrase: “Airmen may omit the words ‘so help me God,’ if desired for personal reasons.”
The air force has said it cannot change the rule without congressional action.
“The right to omit these words is not only recognized by the courts, but has also been recognized by the air force itself,” the AHA said in the letter. AHA lawyer Monica Miller said the group will sue if he is not allowed to reenlist without including “so help me God” in the oath.
The air force did not respond to the Guardian’s request for comment, but told Air Force Times that the airman has until November, when his terms of service expire, to swear his oath with the phrase included.
Air force spokesperson Rose Richeson also told the news site that the air force is asking the Defense Department to review the rule. “The opinion will help inform the future decision,” Richeson said.
The full text of the oath is:
“I, ____________________, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.”
This battle echoes still brewing controversies over the inclusion of God in US government-sanctioned settings.
The inclusion of “under God” in the pledge of allegiance, which is recited in some public schools across the US, is routinely challenged. The most prominent challenge came in 2004, when a father’s lawsuit against the inclusion of the phrase made its way to the supreme court. The nation’s highest court overturned the ruling on procedural grounds.
Source: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/10/us-air-force-sergeant-reenlist-god-oath
The Follow-up:
Quote:
Faster than a new recruit can shout “Sir, yes sir!” the US Air Force has reversed its policy requiring new recruits and those reenlisting to conclude a swearing-in oath with “So help me God.”
The trouble for the Air Force started when a Tech. Sgt. at Creech Air Force Base in Nevada with 10 years’ service wanted to reenlist. As an atheist, he didn’t see why he had to swear an oath to a deity he didn’t believe in. It seemed to violate the religious establishment clause of the US Constitution. And besides, none of the other branches of the US military required it, nor did the honor code at the US Air Force Academy turning out shiny, new Second Lieutenants.
So the sergeant scratched out that last line in the Air Force enlistment/reenlistment document, which read in full: “I, [insert name], do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.”
Recommended: Are you smarter than a US Marine? Take the recruitment quiz
It seemed to him that to “swear (or affirm)” was commitment enough, and civil libertarians agreed.
When the American Humanist Association (AHA) announced that it would represent the sergeant – in court, if necessary – the Air Force scrambled to find a way out of a situation marked by mounting ridicule. More seriously, the situation seemed to reinforce the difficulty the Air Force has had in recent years with criticisms involving proselytizing and other forms of forced religiosity, including at the Air Force Academy.
Within days, the Air Force had kicked the situation up to the Pentagon, where the Defense Department’s General Counsel quickly determined that the sergeant was correct.
“We take any instance in which Airmen report concerns regarding religious freedom seriously,” Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James said in a statement. “We are making the appropriate adjustments to ensure our Airmen's rights are protected.”
“The Air Force will be updating the instructions for both enlisted and commissioned Airmen to reflect these changes in the coming weeks, but the policy change is effective now,” the Air Force declared. “Airmen who choose to omit the words 'So help me God' from enlistment and officer appointment oaths may do so.”
Monica Miller, an attorney with the American Humanist Association, pronounced herself “pleased that the U.S. Department of Defense has confirmed our client has a First Amendment right to omit the reference to a supreme being in his reenlistment oath.”
“We hope the Air Force will respect the constitutional rights of Atheists in the future,” she said in a statement.
It’s probably not the last the Air Force and the other services have heard about religion in the US military.
Says Jason Torpy, president of the Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers, “Now we return to seeking other equal rights such as identification on official records, chaplain support, and spiritual fitness training that helps humanists and other nontheists.”
The trouble for the Air Force started when a Tech. Sgt. at Creech Air Force Base in Nevada with 10 years’ service wanted to reenlist. As an atheist, he didn’t see why he had to swear an oath to a deity he didn’t believe in. It seemed to violate the religious establishment clause of the US Constitution. And besides, none of the other branches of the US military required it, nor did the honor code at the US Air Force Academy turning out shiny, new Second Lieutenants.
So the sergeant scratched out that last line in the Air Force enlistment/reenlistment document, which read in full: “I, [insert name], do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.”
Recommended: Are you smarter than a US Marine? Take the recruitment quiz
It seemed to him that to “swear (or affirm)” was commitment enough, and civil libertarians agreed.
When the American Humanist Association (AHA) announced that it would represent the sergeant – in court, if necessary – the Air Force scrambled to find a way out of a situation marked by mounting ridicule. More seriously, the situation seemed to reinforce the difficulty the Air Force has had in recent years with criticisms involving proselytizing and other forms of forced religiosity, including at the Air Force Academy.
Within days, the Air Force had kicked the situation up to the Pentagon, where the Defense Department’s General Counsel quickly determined that the sergeant was correct.
“We take any instance in which Airmen report concerns regarding religious freedom seriously,” Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James said in a statement. “We are making the appropriate adjustments to ensure our Airmen's rights are protected.”
“The Air Force will be updating the instructions for both enlisted and commissioned Airmen to reflect these changes in the coming weeks, but the policy change is effective now,” the Air Force declared. “Airmen who choose to omit the words 'So help me God' from enlistment and officer appointment oaths may do so.”
Monica Miller, an attorney with the American Humanist Association, pronounced herself “pleased that the U.S. Department of Defense has confirmed our client has a First Amendment right to omit the reference to a supreme being in his reenlistment oath.”
“We hope the Air Force will respect the constitutional rights of Atheists in the future,” she said in a statement.
It’s probably not the last the Air Force and the other services have heard about religion in the US military.
Says Jason Torpy, president of the Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers, “Now we return to seeking other equal rights such as identification on official records, chaplain support, and spiritual fitness training that helps humanists and other nontheists.”
Source: http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Military/2014/0918/Air-Force-does-quick-about-face-on-So-help-me-God
Some topics to help promote discussion (but feel free to think of your own):
- Should this be legal?
Do you think the letter will be effective/promote changes?
Have you ever been in a similar circumstance? Have you ever been in a situation where you had to pretend to affirm to a higher power or religious 'moral' you didn't believe in to fit in/keep a job/stay safe?
What would you like to see changed, if anything, regarding public sector jobs having religious requirements?
