It is required by the Constitution of the State of California that every state employee (including supported graduate students at the University of California) sign a "State Oath of Allegiance." I resisted this requirement, and I urge others in the UC system with objections to the Oath to do the same. The purpose of this account is to provide a synopsis of the facts as I understand them in order to publicize a hitherto obscure alternative to signing the Oath in its unmodified form.
In short, moral, religious, and/or political objections may be recorded in an addendum to the Oath, provided that they do not "nullify" it.
UPDATE: In December of 1999 a review of recent addenda concluded that my October 1998 Addendum should not have been approved and I was forced to revise it. The memorandum that previously appeared on this page turned out not to be a public document and not a statement of policy, so it will no longer appear here.
The text of the Oath (and its requirement for state employment) is no less than Article XX, section 3 of the Constitution of the State of California. Here is the text of the Oath as it appears on the document to which I was required to affix my signature in order to receive graduate support:
I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of California against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of California; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties upon which I am about to enter.
My particular objections aside, it is impossible to reconcile
After a good amount of bureaucratic legwork, I uncovered a provision for the attachment of an addendum to the Oath articulating an apparently wide range of objections. The University Counsel at the Office of the President ultimately approves these addenda with the stipulation only that they not "nullify" the Oath.
Here is the version of my Addendum what was eventually accepted and that I signed.
ADDENDUM It is my belief that the State Oath of Allegiance is a disgraceful document and its requirement deeply disturbs my conscience. Its history and motivation are authoritarian, antidemocratic, totalitarian, fascist, and antisocial. Under no circumstances would I have accepted its condition for employment had I been informed in advance. Finally, it seems to me a matter of logic that the Oath is self-contradictory in that it is inconsistent with numerous "inalienable" rights expressly guaranteed in both the California and United States Constitutions. 1. DEMOCRATIC PRINCIPLES AND THE OATH The text of the Oath and its requirement for employment (including my graduate support) at the University of California are profoundly disturbing to my conscience. I take them as an affront to the rights of every citizen and antithetical to the principle of academic freedom. They must be viewed in the context of the long and ignominious history of the various loyalty oaths and red scares, the wartime internment of Japanese-American citizens, and other attacks on citizens' rights that stain with everlasting shame both Constitutions to which so many people today remain required to swear loyalty. No less than the threat of a perjury charge "punishable by imprisonment in the state prison not less than one nor more than 14 years" under Section 3108 of the California Government Code looms over anyone whose scruples interfere with his or her willingness to "take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion." Simultaneously, my livelihood depends on my affixing my signature to ideas repugnant to me, and, had I been informed in advance of this requirement, I would have absolutely never considered matriculation at the University of California. It is a principle of democracy and of human freedom that the state derives its legitimacy from the population, and that it is granted power only to that extent. The converse---that citizens be granted full rights only by proclaiming loyalty to state power---is, I think it is clear, diametrically opposed to the whole of the democratic tradition. The definition of fascism is "a political philosophy, movement, or regime that exalts nation . . . above the individual" (Merriam-Webster 1998). Coercion not only of behavior but also of beliefs through the threat of imprisonment or other forms of state violence is an expression of the totalitarian mentality at its most extreme. I feel the Oath pits me against an ominous and pernicious category of unnamed, undefined "domestic enemies." The implication that I place myself into this category by resisting the Oath is unmistakable to me. This Oath and its predecessors---and its analogues in societies unflattering for ours even to be compared---have been very effective at dividing the populace and intimidating and isolating conscientious, honest, law-abiding dissidents. Consequently I strongly believe that the Oath articulates an explicitly fascist, explicitly antisocial vision. 2. CONSTITUTIONAL GUARANTEES AND THE OATH Article I of the Constitution of California guarantees the following: "All people are by nature free and independent and have inalienable rights. Among these are enjoying and defending life and liberty, acquiring, possessing, and protecting property, and pursuing and obtaining safety, happiness, and privacy" (Section 1). "Every person may freely speak . . . his or her sentiments on all subjects. . . ." This guarantee necessarily includes the right freely to hold beliefs (Section 2). "Free exercise and enjoyment of religion without discrimination or preference are guaranteed," obviously including my deep moral beliefs as described in this Addendum, cited as a "liberty of conscience" (Section 4). "A person may not be disqualified from entering or pursuing . . . employment because of sex, race, creed, color, or national or ethnic origin" (Section 8). It is in my view, then, clear that the Oath and its requirement deny me my freedom, attempt to deprive me of property and livelihood, violate my privacy, attempt to legislate my beliefs under threat of imprisonment, and threaten to deny me employment on the basis of creed, thus repeatedly and directly violating, to the letter, numerous specific rights guaranteed by the same document that contains the text of the Oath (Article XX, Section 3). The First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States, of course, guarantees every citizen's right to freedom of "religion," again including the beliefs discussed above, and "freedom of speech," obviously circumscribing freedom of opinion. It is in my view obvious that the Oath violates these rights. Finally, it must be noted---must be insisted---that human rights are intrinsic and inalienable; they are emphatically not granted by governments through constitutions or any other means. To repeat, our political ideal is the precise opposite: governments are granted any and all rights and power by the assent of the governed. Nonetheless, in my opinion the Oath contradicts itself in its own terms as it cannot be consistent with rights explicitly guaranteed by both constitutions which it apparently seeks to protect.
I hope that others who are hesitant to sign the Oath in order to begin or continue employment at the University of California will be encouraged and assisted by this account. Please email questions or comments.
California Constitution: Article XX, Section 3
See the full text of the Constitution of California. See also Matthew Belmonte's collection of legislation related to the Oath.
Academic employees of the University of California are required only to attest to the first paragraph of the Oath (bold, below).
CALIFORNIA CONSTITUTION
ARTICLE 20 MISCELLANEOUS SUBJECTS
SEC. 3. Members of the Legislature, and all public officers and
employees, executive, legislative, and judicial, except such inferior
officers and employees as may be by law exempted, shall, before they
enter upon the duties of their respective offices, take and
subscribe the following oath or affirmation:
"I, ______, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support
and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Consti-
tution of the State of California against all enemies, foreign
and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the
Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the
State of California; that I take this obligation freely, without
any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will
well and faithfully discharge the duties upon which I am about
to enter.
"And I do further swear (or affirm) that I do not advocate, nor
am I a member of any party or organization, political or other-
wise, that now advocates the overthrow of the Government of the
United States or of the State of California by force or violence
or other unlawful means; that within the five years immediately
preceding the taking of this oath (or affirmation) I have not
been a member of any party or organization, political or other-
wise, that advocated the overthrow of the Government of the
United States or of the State of California by force or violence
or other unlawful means except as follows:
________________________________________________________________
(If no affiliations, write in the words "No Exceptions")
and that during such time as I hold the office of ______________
________________________________ I will not advocate nor become
(name of office)
a member of any party or organization, political or otherwise,
that advocates the overthrow of the Government of the United
States or of the State of California by force or violence or
other unlawful means."
And no other oath, declaration, or test, shall be required as a
qualification for any public office or employment.
"Public officer and employee" includes every officer and employee
of the State, including the University of California, every county,
city, city and county, district, and authority, including any
department, division, bureau, board, commission, agency, or
instrumentality of any of the foregoing.