VIDEO: Senator Moody Fights to Bring Our Schools Back to Basics, Introduces PLEDGE Act to Instill Patriotism and the Pledge of Allegiance in D.C. Schools

WASHINGTON, D.C.-Senator Ashley Moody is fighting back against the anti-American indoctrination in schools. Currently, there are schools in Washington, D.C., the nation's capital, that do not display our flag or set aside time for students to recite the Pledge of Allegiance, but they do teach them to be activists. Today, Senator Moody introduced the PLEDGE Act, which would require American flags to be displayed in all Washington, D.C. school classrooms and that students be given the opportunity to recite the Pledge of Allegiance daily. At a time when anti-American sentiment and communist ideas are spreading across the country, Senator Moody is leading a restoration of our civic traditions and a reverence for our common values that made the U.S. the greatest country in the world.

"Radicals want to teach kids to be ashamed of the United States of America and how to be activists instead. We should be teaching kids why America is worth loving, and most importantly, the principles and values that make America worth defending. My PLEDGE Act helps restore pride in our nation by reminding students every day of the freedom, responsibilities, and blessings that come with being an American, and the sacrifices made for our flag and everything it represents," said Senator Ashley Moody.

BACKGROUND:

• More than 40 states have varying Pledge requirements in their schools. With Senator Moody's bill, the schools in our nation's capital should set an example for schools nationwide.
• Senator Moody sits on the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs Subcommittee on Disaster Management, District of Columbia, and Census, that has jurisdiction over this legislation.
• Younger generations are less likely to say they have pride in being an American-according to a Gallup poll, less than half (41%) of people belonging to Generation Z have been extremely or very proud to be Americans, compared with 58% of millennials. The rate increases to 71% of Generation X, 75% of the baby boom generation and 83% of the Silent Generation. Only 36% of Democrats say they are extremely or very proud to be Americans.
• View full text of the PLEDGE Act here.
• Senator Moody is also fighting to ensure that more American flags that are displayed or bought with federals funds are made in the U.S.A.

While not requiring schools to display the American Flag or having students recite the Pledge of Allegiance, D.C. schools do require schools to teach the following outrageous curriculum.

• According to the District of Columbia Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE), the Washington, DC, K-12 Social Studies Standards include the following:
  • First-grade Social Studies Standards identify Harvey Milk as a past community leader for students to analyze, despite the fact that Milk entered into a relationship with an underage teenage boy when he was 33 years old.
  • First-grade students are required to learn how populations such as the LGBTQ+ community have shaped and defined the Washington, D.C. community.
  • Third-grade Social Studies Standards require students to evaluate the impact of significant political movements, including LGBTQ+ liberation, on the lives of District of Columbia residents.
  • Fourth-grade social studies standards require students to evaluate the limitations of using European source material to understand Indigenous history, including the "limitations of European understanding of Two-Spirit identities."
  • Fifth-grade social studies standards require students to analyze the rise of queer culture during the Black Renaissance.
  • Fifth-grade standards require students to compare the experiences of LGBTQ+ servicemembers returning to the United States after World War II.
  • Fifth-grade students are introduced to the concept of the "The Long Civil Rights Movement," which teaches that the Civil Rights Movement extends to the present day and that its goals have "intersected" beyond race to include gender, sexuality, class, religion, and sovereignty.

According to OSSE's 2025 statewide assessment results:

• English Language Arts
  • Grades 3-5: Only 34.8% of students met or exceeded expectations.
  • Grades 6-8: Only 40.2% of students met or exceeded expectations.
  • Grades 9-12: Only 38.8% of students met or exceeded expectations.
• Mathematics
  • Grades 3-5: Only 31.2% of students met or exceeded expectations.
  • Grades 6-8: Only 26.4% of students met or exceeded expectations.
  • Grades 9-12: Only 15.0% of students met or exceeded expectations.

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