Peekskill Councilwoman Gets Support for Refusing to Say the Pledge
Peekskill Councilwoman Vanessa Agudelo received some public support last week for her decision not to say the Pledge of Allegiance during Common Council meetings and other events.
Several residents, some carrying signs, lauded Agudelo at the first meeting where residents could address the Council since she made headlines, stretching as far as the United Kingdom, earlier this month.
Agudelo, a Democrat who has been on the council for five months, was first openly criticized about her stance at an April 23 meeting by outspoken resident Leesther Brown and also was lambasted by former Mayor Frank Catalina in a Facebook post.
A representative of the Peekskill NAACP stated the organization stood by Agudelo, who earlier in the meeting silently faced the United States flag with her hand behind her back, while another speaker called her “a progressive councilwoman…a person we want on the Council.”
“I think it’s pretty amazing that we have someone on the Common Council who has the strength of conviction and the integrity and the courage to express themselves as they seem appropriate, just standing up for themselves,” said Robin Alpern, a Peekskill resident who described herself as a Quaker who doesn’t say the Pledge of Allegiance partly for religious reasons.
Arnie Paglia, owner of the Division Street Grill in downtown Peekskill, also praised Agudelo.
“In the 20 years I have been coming to Common Council meetings, she has displayed the most courageous and distinctive ability to stand up as an individual and stand up for our rights as Americans,” Paglia said. “I have not seen anyone stand up for the rights of Americans as much as Councilwoman Agudelo and I thank her for that.”
George Coniglio said he was “appalled” at Catalina’s remarks on Facebook, in which he stated, in part, “Let me get this straight: An elected official cowardly stands while the Pledge is said but refuses to actually say the Pledge or even respectfully hold her hand over her heart; too young and immature to realize the significance of that pledge and showing respect for the millions who fought and died for her ‘right’ to be a moron and a poor example of a public official.”
“You are a brave woman who deserves tremendous respect and you have a lot of support,” Coniglio said to Agudelo.
Brown, who at the April 23 meeting called on the city’s Ethics Board to investigate the consequences of Agudelo’s actions and maintained she should resign from the Council, said at last week’s meeting Agudelo had a responsibility to respect the 35,000 residents she represents.
“What is so wrong with giving the impression to the people who believe in that flag? At least pretend,” Brown said. “What about us that honor the flag?”
Agudelo did not respond to any of the comments made at the meeting and has yet to offer any other remarks beyond what she submitted to Examiner Media a few weeks ago when she noted she was “a proud member of the Hudson Valley Democratic Socialists of America and a proud environmentalist.”
“My reason for respectfully refraining from saying the Pledge of Allegiance is not because I don’t respect the values this country stands for, it is because of our country’s failure to truly uphold them I,” Agudelo stated. “I have the utmost respect for our service women and men, both overseas and in the states, and I have a deep appreciation for all the sacrifices they have had to make. I do not think our country does enough to address the many challenges our veterans face after coming home from war nor is our country transparent enough about the hundreds, even thousands of lives lost fighting wars that most Americans do not or have not agreed with.”
“There is also this level of unquestionable loyalty and mindless conformity in reciting the pledge on such a consistent basis that makes me personally feel uncomfortable,” she continued. “Many people do not know that our pledge was originally written by a socialist in 1892, that there have been several versions of our pledge since its creation, or that the “under God” was not added until almost a century after, used as a political ploy during the Cold War. Most countries in Europe don’t even have a pledge of allegiance or have discontinued its use. This speaks volumes.”
Rick has more than 40 years’ experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, running the gamut from politics and crime to sports and human interest. He has been an editor at Examiner Media since 2012. Read more from Rick’s editor-author bio here. Read Rick’s work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/pezzullo_rick-writer/
