Commentary on the Pledge of Allegiance

As a school boy, a principal at Red Skelton's school had been listening to his class recite the Pledge of Allegiance all semester.

One day the principal asked the class if he could try to explain the meaning of each word. What follows is what was explained to Red as a young boy.

“I- Me, an individual, a committee of one.

Pledge - Dedicate all of my worldly goods to give without self pity.

Allegiance - My love and my devotion.

To the Flag - Our standard, Old Glory; a symbol of freedom. Wherever she waves, there's respect— because your loyalty has given her a dignity that shouts freedom is everybody's job.

United - That means that we have all come together.

States - Individual communities that have united into 48 great states; 48 individual communities with pride and dignity, and purpose; all divided with imaginary boundaries, yet, united to a common purpose, and that's love for country.

And to the Republic – Republic: a state in which sovereign power is invested in representatives chosen by the people to govern, and government is the people, and it's from the people to the leaders, not from the leaders to the people.

For Which It Stands, One Nation - One nation, meaning so blessed by God.

Indivisible - Incapable of being divided.

With Liberty - Which is freedom; the right of power to live one's own life without threats, fear, or some sort of retaliation.

And Justice - The principle or qualities of dealing fairly with others.

For All - For all, which means, boys and girls, it’s as much your country as it is mine.”

He concluded with this:

“Since I was a small boy, two states have been added to our country, and two words have been added to the Pledge of Allegiance, "under God." Wouldn't it be a pity if someone said, "that is a prayer," and that would be eliminated from schools too?”

Red Skelton
1913-1997