If you were stopped on the street by a reporter, how would you answer this question? With a shrug? Sadly, you’re not alone.
Our veterans and current military are the most knowledgeable because they have fought to protect what it represents.
This June, we have the opportunity to proclaim our respect and honor for our country by flying the flag, attending a Flag Day parade or teaching our children why we’re doing it.
President Woodrow Wilson established June 14, 100 years ago, as a day to fly our flag with pride. His speech could be proclaimed in 2016 as well as in 1916.
“I … suggest and request that throughout the nation and in every community, the 14th day of June be observed as Flag Day.
“There should be special patriotic exercises to express our thoughtful love of America, our comprehension of the great mission of liberty and justice to which we have devoted ourselves as a people, our pride and our enthusiasm for the political program of the nation, our determination to make it greater and purer with each generation, and our resolution to demonstrate to all the world its sentiment and purpose.”
On June 14, 1777, the design of our first national flag was approved by Congress. It has been modified 27 times since then. Old Glory, the star-spangled banner, has flown since 1959, when President Eisenhower ordered the 50th star for Hawaii, the last state to join the USA.
“God bless America, land that I love,” Irving Berlin’s 1938 song of personal thanks, is still worthy of being our personal sentiment of patriotism.
