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An Alabama Senate committee approved a bill Wednesday seeking to require K-12 public schools to broadcast the national anthem at least once a week during school hours.
Senate Bill 13, sponsored by Sen. Gerald Allen, R-Tuscaloosa, would propose an amendment to the state constitution requiring K-12 schools to “broadcast or sanction the performance” of the first stanza of “The Star-Spangled Banner” at least once per week during school hours.
If the bill is passed, the proposed amendment would then have to be voted on favorably by a majority of the state electorate.
Allen told the committee he is seeking to add an amendment to the bill on the Senate floor to make pre-K schools subject to the amendment’s requirements as well.
The bill was approved by the Senate Education Policy Committee 7-1, with state Sen. Vivian Davis Figures, D-Mobile, opposing.
“I can see you doing maybe a statute to require it, but I can’t go along with the constitutional amendment for something like this,” Figures said.
Figures raised concerns about how the measure would be enforced and what the penalty would be for not following it during the committee’s discussion.
Allen responded that local school boards would be responsible for determining consequences for schools in violation of the proposed amendment.
SB13’s first section describes the history of the national anthem’s composition and adoption as the U.S. national anthem.
“For over 100 years, The Star-Spangled Banner has served to inspire generations of patriotic Americans, and it is imperative that students have exposure to this history and inspiration,” the bill reads.
Sen. Rodger Smitherman, D-Birmingham, urged committee members to read the third stanza of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” which critics have argued contains an attack on Black Americans who joined the British Army to escape slavery.
“When you go back to your office just read it. That’s all I want y’all to do,” Smitherman said during committee discussion. “If you hadn’t read it, it glorifies slavery. It demeans us.”
“Ain’t no way that you can require students in general, and African American students in particular, to glorify [what the stanza says]” Smitherman said. “That’s a slap in their face. That’s a slap in their parents’ face.”
Smitherman argued the importance of including diverse voices in lawmaking by saying the majority of white representatives are either ignorant of or unaffected by the third stanza’s lyrics.
“There’s no sensitivity,” Smitherman said.
“So, I just want everybody to understand that you know it sounds beautiful in the patriotic scheme of things,” Smitherman said. “But in reality… you’re taking this pie and rubbing all into Black folks’ face. So, I would hope that everybody understands what impact this has.”
Sen. Kirk Hatcher, D-Montgomery, similarly expressed concerns regarding the song’s full history not being taken into consideration and ambiguity regarding how penalties for schools or students in violation of the act are to be developed.
“Students may not be required to sing the third stanza but it’s a part of the song,” Hatcher said. “I guarantee you the vast majority of our colleagues may not even know that third verse and what it’s saying.”
“Americans don’t know American history,” Hatcher said. “People can pass a bill out of a committee and maybe onto the floor and have no thought about this for the same reasons that Sen. Smitherman is sharing.”
Additionally, the American Civil Liberties Union of Alabama has released a statement opposing SB13.
“The First Amendment guarantees freedom of expression, including the right to choose whether to engage in patriotic displays. Patriotism takes many shapes and forms, but it should not take the form of forcing students to listen to the Star-Spangled Banner,” the organization wrote.
SB13 mandates that, if the amendment is passed, local boards of education must select a recording of the song’s first stanza from the Library of Congress or its website.
School boards may alternatively require a school-sanctioned band, choral or vocal performance of the first stanza using sheet music archived on the Library of Congress website.
An identical version of the bill has been filed in the state House of Representatives, sponsored by Rep. Arnold Mooney, R-Indian Springs. The bill is pending the House Education Policy Committee for approval.
SB13 will advance to the Senate floor where it will need three-fifths of legislators’ approval to advance.
