At its February 9 meeting, the Greenbelt City Council considered a proposed change to its standing rules to stop reciting the Pledge of Allegiance at the beginning of council meetings. The rule was proposed by Councilmember Frankie Fritz, who stated that “as a matter of conscience,” he didn’t support asking residents to do a pledge before each meeting. He argued that the Pledge of Allegiance is fine for private organizations, but not for Greenbelt. Also invoking the principle of separation of church and state, Fritz argued that a pledge of allegiance under God is not a neutral act.
In opposing the proposed rule, Councilmember Silke Pope made an impassioned response. “Reciting the Pledge of Allegiance before council meetings is a long-standing tradition deeply rooted in the history of our nation and in our shared civic life as a community. As a naturalized citizen, as an immigrant, I am proud to stand and say the pledge alongside everyone who wishes to do so,” said Pope. “At the same time, I respect individual choice and anyone who does not wish to participate can remain seated.”
Councilmember Amy Knesel offered her opinion, saying, “I really appreciate adding the (Greenbelt) community pledge (which council had voted to accept moments earlier). Then there are issues I have with the United States of America. I do not pledge allegiance to the flag. I will stand here; I do not cover my heart and I do not say the words nor will I ever … I don’t think it’s a necessary way to start our meetings.”
Councilmember Kristen Weaver added her view, “I do appreciate Councilmember Fritz bringing this forward, because I have very mixed feelings about many of these symbols (like the Pledge) as well … and to be perfectly honest, I usually skip the “under God” part because I don’t like that that’s in our Pledge of Allegiance,” she said. “I understand the discomfort, but at the same time, some of this should be aspirational and I wish what the flag represents were not in such a mess with all the things that are happening. I’m not sure I’m in support of removing the pledge.”
When it was time for public comment, residents expressed strong opposition to the rule to eliminate the Pledge of Allegiance. Resident and former mayor J Davis pointedly said this is “a very emotional thing that you are asking … and maybe you should put this on the ballot and have people vote. Otherwise, you’re being very hypocritical. If you don’t want to say the pledge, then take those flags away and just have the Greenbelt flag there.” She went on to say that the pledge represents what the American Revolution was about and for what people had died.
Davis also suggested that if people knew about this proposed rule, there would be many more of the public at the meeting than the few who attended.
A resident wrote online, “I agree with Councilmember Pope that if somebody doesn’t want to say the pledge, that’s fine … I don’t think it should be removed because those who want to say it should not have their right removed.”
When it came time to vote on Fritz’s proposed rule about the Pledge, he said, “I understand this is a very emotional topic for members of the public, and that’s why I brought it up. People can say the pledge (in other venues) … but if you are coming to this meeting, are we intentionally going to ask every single person to make a decision? The same argument was made for school prayer: oh, you don’t have to pray, but we know it influences people, and we know that neighbors, especially neighbors who might not look like their other neighbors, feel pressured to perform patriotism.” Fritz concluded, “I’m not going to make a motion now, but I think the discussion needs to be had.”
No action was taken on the proposed rule change to eliminate the Pledge – it was neither voted on nor tabled. Nineteen other changes to council’s standing rules were voted on, all passing, and will go on for first and second readings. One was tabled (see article here).
This article appeared in print on Page 7 of the February 19, 2026 issue of the Greenbelt News Review. It was published in this online format on February 26, 2026.
