Constitution Day to be held Wednesday
This Wednesday, Sept. 17 is a special day for educating our children on the United States Constitution.
What will our children be taught this Sept. 17? Are they teaching the U.S. Constitution as they should? You are encouraged to find out and express your concern if they aren’t.
According to the U.S. Library of Congress, Constitution Day and Citizenship Day are observed each year on Sept. 17 to commemorate the signing of the Constitution on Sept. 17, 1787, and “recognize all who, by coming of age or by naturalization, have become citizens.”
This commemoration had its origin in 1940, when Congress passed a joint resolution authorizing and requesting the president to issue annually a proclamation setting aside the third Sunday in May for the public recognition of all who had attained the status of American citizenship. The designation for this day was “I Am An American Day.”
In 1952 Congress repealed this joint resolution and passed a new law moving the date to Sept. 17 to commemorate “the formation and signing, on Sept. 17, 1787, of the Constitution of the United States.” The day was still designated as “Citizenship Day” and retained its original purpose of recognizing all those who had attained American citizenship.
This law urged civil and educational authorities of states, counties, cities and towns to make plans for the proper observance of the day and “for the complete instruction of citizens in their responsibilities and opportunities as citizens of the United States and of the State and locality in which they reside.”
In 2004 under U.S. Sen. Robert Byrd’s urging, Congress changed the designation of this day to “Constitution Day and Citizenship Day” and added two new requirements in the commemoration of this day. The first is that the head of every federal agency provide each employee with educational and training materials concerning the Constitution on Sept. 17. The second is that each educational institution which receives federal funds should hold a program for students every Sept. 17.
David Show is the founder of the Fayette Patriots and chairman of the Fayette County Republican Party.