“I pledge allegiance to my flag and the Republic for which it stand-one nation indivisible-with liberty and justice for all.”
To celebrate Columbus arrival to America 400 years before, The Youth’s Companion in Boston, published the above words in 1892. Francis Bellamy, a circulation managerfor the magazine wrote the original pledge.
Reprint on thousands of leaflets, the pledge went out to hundreds of public schools.. On October 12, 1892, over 12 million children recited the pledge to the Stars and Stripes in commemoration of Columbus;s arrival to America. This pledge has become a school-day ritual all over the country.
In 1923, at the first National Flag Conference mad an editorial change tot he pledge. The words ‘my flag’ were replaced with ‘the flag of the Untied States.” The reason? TO help immigrants think of their new land and not drift to thinking of their notice colors when they are reciting the pledge.
Many other changes were suggested but none stuck: adding ‘born and unborn’ to the end of the pledge, making sure that ‘liberty and justice for all’ is seen as a goal and not a fact and adding an oath to not drink alcohol.
Congress officially recognized the Pledge of Allegiance in 1942, and one year later the Supreme Court ruled that children could not be forced to recite the Pledge.
One last amendment was made in 1954 when the words, ‘under God’ were added. President Dwight D. Eisenhower said about the change: “In this way, we are reaffirming the transcendence of religious faith in America’s heritage and future; in this way we shall constantly strengthen those spiritual weapons which forever will be our country’s most powerful resourced in peace and war.”
“I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
