WHEREAS, the United States of America is an exceptional nation whose people have always striven to form a more perfect union based upon our founding principles and the unalienable rights endowed to us by our Creator;
WHEREAS, America’s constitutional republic, informed by our founding principles of liberty and equality, is a glorious achievement and the source of our ever-advancing victories against hatred and oppression;
WHEREAS, generations past have constructed majestic monuments like the National Archives and its beautiful Rotunda to house our founding documents as an eternal testament to their power to give liberty and hope to all;
WHEREAS, our Founding Fathers – including George Washington and Thomas Jefferson – as well as leaders like Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass and Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. were among the greatest Americans to ever live, that they deserve to be honored as heroes, and that we should teach our children the truth about their lives and achievements;
WHEREAS, September is (i) the traditional back to school month, and (ii) the month in which we annually commemorate the signing of the United States Constitution on September 17, 1787 and celebrate our founding principles of liberty and equality, it is an especially appropriate month to consider what we teach our children about America in our K-12 education system and an appropriate month to identify false doctrines and harmful teaching practices that must be kept out of our schools;
WHEREAS, our children and grandchildren should be taught to take pride in their country, to respect our founding principles of liberty and equality, and to have a sense of American history that is both truthful and inspiring;
WHEREAS, we must have a curriculum that teaches that all children are created equal, have equal moral value under God, our Constitution, and the law, and that they are members of a national community united by our founding principles;
WHEREAS, civics education should focus on the serious study of our founding documents and the principles of liberty and equality – not coerce students into engaging in extracurricular political action on behalf of contemporary policy positions;
WHEREAS, our young people should be taught that, as citizens, we should view one another not according to race or sex, but as individuals made in the image of God;
WHEREAS, teaching children that America’s constitutional republic was founded on the principle of systemic racism is false, divisive and must be stopped;
WHEREAS, we must prohibit any curriculum that pits students against one another on the basis of race or sex;
WHEREAS, those who call our constitutional system or our society “systemically racist” greatly misunderstand the career of liberty and its roots in America’s founding;
WHEREAS, we must prevent schools from politicizing education, including through any curriculum that requires students to protest and lobby during or after school;
WHEREAS, education in our constitutional republic is preeminently the province of states and localities, and no single approach to the teaching of history or civics should be directly or indirectly imposed by the federal government; and
WHEREAS, it is imperative that we restore an honest, patriotic education in our schools that cultivates in our children a profound love for our country.
NOW THEREFORE, I, ____________, [Governor/Mayor/Principal/Other] of __ __________, by the power and authority vested in me by ______, do hereby:
- Proclaim the month of September as Patriotic Education Month.
- Call upon the citizens of this state, civil society, houses of worship, and elected officials at every level of government to proudly reaffirm the ideals and principles of our country in pursuit of greater opportunity and freedom for all.
- Call upon all citizens of this state to celebrate America’s glorious founding principles of liberty and equality with appropriate festivities and activities.
- Call upon neighbors to reaffirm their bonds of friendship and loyalty to one another as Americans, grounded in the eternal truths of God, Family, Community, and Country.
- Call upon community bands and orchestras to play patriotic songs, hymns, and spirituals that celebrate American history, especially the indomitable spirit of all Americans who have overcome evil, endured tremendous hardship, and made profound sacrifices to help realize and defend our founding ideals.
- Call upon mayors and local leaders to decorate their towns, hold parades, and sponsor activities that unite communities around our common citizenship.
- Call upon all the citizens of this State to proudly display the flag outside their homes, businesses, workplaces, and on their social media accounts throughout the month of September as a symbol of unity, equality, solidarity, and hope.