By: David Conde
My earliest recollection of the Pledge of Allegiance was in the second grade at Lincoln Elementary School in Sterling, Colorado. We were taught to face the flag and put our right hand over the heart as we said the Pledge.
Not so for the Cub Scouts in the class who would instead raise their right hand showing two fingers. I remember envying those kids and wishing I was a scout in order to show respect their way as it appeared more cool.
At Garden Place Elementary in Denver the ritual was more elaborate as there was an honor guard that marched into the auditorium every morning and brought in the flags of the United States and Colorado to be placed on stage before saying the Pledge. I saw these occasions as a normal ritual that somehow brought us together.
As a military inductee at the age of 17, I took the oath, this time, to the Constitution of the United States and swore to defend it “against all enemies foreign and domestic” as well as the laws that derive from it. At the time, I took the oath to be a very serious promise and later learned that it was more than that.
When I deployed to West Germany I also took the opportunity to attend the University of Maryland local campus enrolling in a variety of available courses. Among them were several history and political science classes that gave me a greater understanding of why my oath to the Constitution was so significant.
I learned that for it to work, democracy demands a common understanding of allegiance to who we are as a people. I learned that we do not swear fidelity to a person or an institution but to the words written on a piece of paper that express the ideals that form a legal road map, unifies our belief in self government and facilitates a common vision of our country.
There are no short cuts or expedient departures from the Constitution in order to fulfill even a desire to better our human condition. If that desire is strong enough and is shared by a great majority of the people, there are ways to explore its constitutionality or create amendments that can be voted on by citizens.
The Constitution as amended provides for equality of treatment under the law. Although America has had a long history of violating that premise, the perfection of the union with ideals such as this is still an ongoing process.
The present danger to the Constitution is by far the feeling on the part of many people with political power that they are above the law or that the rules do not apply to them. This has been dramatically demonstrated by former President Donald Trump and his followers in the present and in the immediate past. This is extremely dangerous because the Constitution provides for a biblical type of covenant that unites a people. When this covenant is diminished or not respected, it results in fragmentation much like the one that split the Confederacy from the Union.
Not making the Constitution the center of our self government because of race-based grievances is a major contributor to our current disunity. We fought a Civil War once before because of people turning their back on the Constitution. Faithfully following the Constitution and pledge to our flag is key to our unity and independence. Taking the oath and pledge seriously is important because it has to do with our future.
