Indivisible means unbreakable--
our country cannot be split into separate parts.
No matter how much we might disagree about some things, we all agree on one thing: we are strongest when we work together and help each other out.
from I pledge allegiance: the Pledge of Allegiance:
with commentary
written by Bill Martin, Jr. and Michael Sampson
illustrated by Chris Raschka
Candlewick Press, 2002
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.
--Frances Bellamy, 1892
I learned to say “The Pledge” when I was in kindergarten. We all stood next to our tables, put our right hands over our hearts, and recited words we didn’t completely understand. But we did it together, and did it together again and again until we graduated high school. By then, most of us did understand it, mostly.
Mr. Bellamy published his poem in 1892 in The Youth’s Companion, a Boston-based children’s magazine. Reprinted on thousands of leaflets and sent to schools all over the country in time for the 400th anniversary of Columbus’s arrival in the Americas, Bellamy’s words were recited by twelve million children as one voice to celebrate that anniversary (Chamber of Commerce.org).
After several edits making the Pledge exclusively American, it was officially adopted by Congress on June 22, 1942, and formally included in the U.S. Flag Code.
Arguing that adding the words “under God” after “one nation” would give students a deeper sense of patriotism, in 1954, Congress passed a law to add the phrase. As you can imagine, it was met with controversy. Several lawsuits were argued in various courts for various reasons. In 2010, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that reciting the pledge did not violate students’ rights because students are permitted to choose not to participate.
Until very recently, I believed the United States, under the leadership of reasonable lawmakers and judges, was moving, albeit slowly, toward becoming a more empathetic nation.
Now I believe differently.
Not that Americans are not empathetic. I believe most of us are. I believe most of us want to help our neighbors, in the most general sense of that word.
I believe most of us are troubled by the cruelty, callousness, and carelessness we are seeing from this current government at the highest level. And the cowardice, fear, and selfishness of those who we elected to represent us.
The question I most often ask myself is What can I do? The real answer might be “not much,” but to not even try to make a difference just feels wrong.
We can make calls, send emails, or even write letters to our local, state, and national elected officials. We can show up to demonstrate. We can support the causes and people of like mind who are denouncing the cruelty we feel is engulfing us.
We can do the best we can to turn our own fear, anger, and grief into action.
Here are some sources that might be helpful.
5 Calls app is easy to download onto your smartphone.
https://5calls.org
Click here to contact Federal, State, and Local elected officials.
https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials/
Positive reinforcement is as important as a complaint, suggestion, or any other negative comment.
According to USA Today, more than 5,000,000 (five million) people attended the “No Kings” protest on June 14, 2025. Over 200 organizations sponsored more than 2,100 rallies in all 50 states.
The next general protest will be held on July 17th. Called “No Kings,” “Good Trouble Lives On,” or “Anti-Trump,” depending on where you look, sponsors are, among many others, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), 50501, MoveOn.org, Good Trouble Lives On, and Indivisible.
You can find a location near you by typing “July 17, 2025” into Google or any other search engine.
Be curious! (and keep showing up)
our country cannot be split into separate parts.
No matter how much we might disagree about some things, we all agree on one thing: we are strongest when we work together and help each other out.
from I pledge allegiance: the Pledge of Allegiance:
with commentary
written by Bill Martin, Jr. and Michael Sampson
illustrated by Chris Raschka
Candlewick Press, 2002
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.
--Frances Bellamy, 1892
I learned to say “The Pledge” when I was in kindergarten. We all stood next to our tables, put our right hands over our hearts, and recited words we didn’t completely understand. But we did it together, and did it together again and again until we graduated high school. By then, most of us did understand it, mostly.
Mr. Bellamy published his poem in 1892 in The Youth’s Companion, a Boston-based children’s magazine. Reprinted on thousands of leaflets and sent to schools all over the country in time for the 400th anniversary of Columbus’s arrival in the Americas, Bellamy’s words were recited by twelve million children as one voice to celebrate that anniversary (Chamber of Commerce.org).
After several edits making the Pledge exclusively American, it was officially adopted by Congress on June 22, 1942, and formally included in the U.S. Flag Code.
Arguing that adding the words “under God” after “one nation” would give students a deeper sense of patriotism, in 1954, Congress passed a law to add the phrase. As you can imagine, it was met with controversy. Several lawsuits were argued in various courts for various reasons. In 2010, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that reciting the pledge did not violate students’ rights because students are permitted to choose not to participate.
Until very recently, I believed the United States, under the leadership of reasonable lawmakers and judges, was moving, albeit slowly, toward becoming a more empathetic nation.
Now I believe differently.
Not that Americans are not empathetic. I believe most of us are. I believe most of us want to help our neighbors, in the most general sense of that word.
I believe most of us are troubled by the cruelty, callousness, and carelessness we are seeing from this current government at the highest level. And the cowardice, fear, and selfishness of those who we elected to represent us.
The question I most often ask myself is What can I do? The real answer might be “not much,” but to not even try to make a difference just feels wrong.
We can make calls, send emails, or even write letters to our local, state, and national elected officials. We can show up to demonstrate. We can support the causes and people of like mind who are denouncing the cruelty we feel is engulfing us.
We can do the best we can to turn our own fear, anger, and grief into action.
Here are some sources that might be helpful.
5 Calls app is easy to download onto your smartphone.
https://5calls.org
Click here to contact Federal, State, and Local elected officials.
https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials/
Positive reinforcement is as important as a complaint, suggestion, or any other negative comment.
According to USA Today, more than 5,000,000 (five million) people attended the “No Kings” protest on June 14, 2025. Over 200 organizations sponsored more than 2,100 rallies in all 50 states.
The next general protest will be held on July 17th. Called “No Kings,” “Good Trouble Lives On,” or “Anti-Trump,” depending on where you look, sponsors are, among many others, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), 50501, MoveOn.org, Good Trouble Lives On, and Indivisible.
You can find a location near you by typing “July 17, 2025” into Google or any other search engine.
Be curious! (and keep showing up)
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