To the editor:

There are torn remnants of an American Flag whipping in the wind not far from my house. Bit by bit, the blasts consume it. Day after day, it rips and shrinks. Only a few Stars and Stripes still resist surrender.

Symbols carry weight. High School Mascots. Wedding rings. Raised fists. The cross. They are reminders, commitments and calls to action. Each color, stripe and star of Old Glory carries meaning and expectations.

The tattered flag did not happen overnight. The lack of care and respect is a symbol of surrender. Many have relaxed their allegiance to democracy and allowed the fabric of this nation to become threadbare. The Pledge of Allegiance to be “one nation- under God — indivisible — with liberty and justice for all” fades under the shouts for profit, efficiency, entertainment and unenlightened self-interest.

After the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, people threatened by “equality and justice for all” continued to undermined the rights of others. We naively thought the law would bring justice and did not pay close attention to the festering evil. Redlining, gerrymandering, selective law enforcement, arson, lynchings, assassinations and rewriting laws to quietly benefit the very wealthy grew rapidly by creating imagined enemies from the weak and vulnerable and using religion and patriotism as a cover for an agenda hidden in a firehose of lies and misinformation.

Trust has been broken. Atrocities of war, intentional chaos, starvation and dismantling democracy are in motion. This election may be your last chance to speak before you are made too weak and vulnerable to resist this growing police state purge. Pay attention. Raise the Stars and Stripes as a daily reminder of what a democracy should be and do what you can to make it true.

William Richards

Walnut Grove