MADISON, Wis. -- The Madison School Board is taking heavy criticism for a decision effectively barring children from saying the Pledge of Allegiance in class.

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The Pledge of Allegiance is a daily part of class for Mrs. Weiss' second-graders at Rawson Elementary in South Milwaukee.

But, it's the "one nation under God" line that the Madison School Board found offensive.

"What I wanted to do was eliminate that which would be repugnant to those who believe very strongly and would have their personal and political beliefs violated by group coercion," Madison School District board member Bill Keys said.

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"A state law just implemented in September requires the pledge or the national anthem, daily, in every school. Instead of allowing the schools to choose, the school board settled on an instrumental version of the national anthem.

Their decision isn't playing well on the streets of South Milwaukee.

J.J. Sprague of South Milwaukee pointed out that the United States currency already says "In God We Trust," and that many citizens don't have a problem with that.

"It's poor timing, very poor timing. This is a time when the entire country is uniting and we are all praying for the survivors and the victims of the recent national disaster," Sprague said.

On Tuesday, the Madison School Board announced that it will reconsider its decision after the school district received 426 e-mails and phone calls with only five supporting their decision.

The meeting to reconsider the ban is now set for Monday.

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