The Pledge of Allegiance Was A Marketing Ploy

Magazines, flags, fascists, and preachers: The untold story of America’s most patriotic sales drive.

Photo by Charles "Duck" Unitas on Unsplash

“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.”

— Francis Bellamy, “The Pledge of Allegiance” (1892)

If you’re American, you know those words by heart. Even if you hoped you’d forget. Even if you haven’t thought about them in a while. You might think they’re cornball, but you’ve mumbled them 2,500 or so times. Every morning. 200-ish mornings per year. For 13 years. K through 12. Ages 5 through 18. You had to. It’s (somehow) the law.

The Pledge of Allegiance is a tradition, a ritual, a rite of passage. At a mere 31 words, it’s not the Nicene Creed. Hell, it’s not even a Hail Mary. But it conveys a kind of hushed gravitas unmatched anywhere outside a Church. Even the “Star Spangled Banner” has some wiggle room. (My toxic trait is that I always use those two minutes to grab concessions at a ballgame.) But the pledge? You stood still. You put your…