Wisconsin’s McIver Institute reports that the school district in Hudson, Wisconsin (part of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area) is apologizing after showing a pro-Barack Obama video to students on Wednesday. It's a sappy “I Pledge” video stuffed with celebrities made by Oprah Winfrey's Harpo Productions in 2009. The school district played the video for middle school students as a part of their “Peace One Day” event.
In the district’s apology, they wrote:
"The reason the video was used was to show students small ways to make a difference in their communities. Most of the video provided viewers with examples like: end hunger in America; volunteer more; always represent your country with pride, dignity and honesty; and care for America's elderly. Unfortunately, the video also had a political slant. The District is non-partisan and does not endorse the political messages found in this video. This video will not be used in the District again."
Middle School Principal Dan Koch made the following announcement to students Thursday afternoon:
"The ‘I Pledge’ video we viewed yesterday included some messages about serving President Barak (sic) Obama. We apologize for any part of the video that was offensive to students, their families and staff. The video conveyed a message that people serve the presidency when in fact our elected officials serve the people. We respect the Office of the President of the United States but like all of our other elected officials, that office serves each of us as well. I sincerely hope that as participants in Wednesday's event what you took away from the experience was to choose to make a difference in your world."
The same controversy erupted when in the fall of 2009 when the Utah Eagle Forum protested that this pro-Obama video was shown to grade-school students in Farmington, Utah.
