Let's Focus on Unity This Flag Day

On June 14, our nation recognizes Flag Day to commemorate the adoption of the American flag — an identifier of who we are as a country.

For many Americans, the flag is an emblem of national pride. It represents patriotism, democracy, freedom and our inalienable rights under the U.S. Constitution.

Even more, the red, white and blue flag signifies what our country was founded on and what we need to keep striving for today — unity.

Within the last few years, we have experienced a more divided and cynical America.

In a survey of 17 countries in Europe, Asia and North America, Americans were most likely to say their society was split along partisan, racial and ethnic lines, according to a Pew Research Center study.

While the current administration promised steps toward unity, studies reveal that Americans feel harmony is a distant concept.

A majority of Americans (64%) believe that the U.S. democracy is “in crisis and at risk of failing,” according to an NPR/Ipsos poll. Nearly two-thirds of respondents believe that America’s democracy is more at risk now than it was a year ago.

On this Flag Day, our country must take the time to pause, reflect and remember what the stars and stripes represent.

It’s not merely a flag flying in the sky. It’s a symbol of a unified nation, protecting and preserving the principles our democracy was founded on in 1776.

In the past few months, we have seen nations around the world rifled in conflicts where their democracy is under threat. Their flags have become beacons of hope and reminders of the beauty of working together to fight for their freedoms.

Yet, in our homeland, we have experienced devastating and vile circumstances that instead of unifying us threaten to tear us apart due to political divisiveness. We struggle to reach across dividing lines in order to achieve a common goal.

What we need to remember is that America can only prosper when we are willing to work together and put our differences aside for the common good. This is something our Founding Fathers sought to accomplish when they created the first American flag.

The first flag (originally the Continental Colors) was created to symbolize the unity of the colonies.

Early into the American Revolution, colonies were fighting for freedom from the British while using their own flags. The Second Continental Congress came together in July of 1775 to establish the Continental Army (a unified fighting force), which led to the creation of the first American flag.

Two years later, the establishment of a national flag was so important to our Founding Fathers that the Second Continental Congress would take a break from writing the articles of the Confederation in order to pass a resolution on the flag.

The resolution stated that “the Flag of the thirteen United States shall be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the Union be thirteen stars, white on a blue field, representing a new constellation.”

Red stood for hardiness and valor; white denoted purity and innocence; and blue represented vigilance, perseverance and justice. Over the years, the number of stars would change until it included all 50 states in 1959.

The flag was a representation of the American Dream — a democracy our Founding Fathers fought to establish.

Proclaiming the first National Flag Day on June 14, 1917, President Woodrow Wilson said, “We meet to celebrate Flag Day because this flag which we honour and under which we serve is the emblem of our unity, our power, our thought and purpose as a nation.”

Years after the creation of the flag, Wilson still recognized that it signified a united nation. Congress would finally approve the national observance of Flag Day in 1949.

The American flag signifies our purpose and identity as a country. It represents the best of us — the pursuit of individuals working together and striving for a thriving democracy.

As a nation of individuals from varying backgrounds, heritages, languages and religious beliefs, it is inevitable that we will have our differences. But, we cannot allow those distinctives to prevent us from reaching a common goal — protecting our Constitutional rights.

This Flag Day, may we all pause and reflect as we see the beautiful American flag. May we be reminded of how far we have come as a nation and how we must continue to work in unity for our democracy to prosper.

And, as President Harry Truman said in his proclamation of Flag Day in 1949, may we “rededicate ourselves to the ideals for which it stands.”