Stripes of Blood, Stars of Liberty

By Wes Westmoreland | The Sunday Column

Wes Westmoreland | The Sunday Column

The Sunday Column – There may be nothing that swells the heart with a greater feeling of patriotism and pride than the Stars and Stripes. Immortalized in song and memory, will anyone forget the emotion brought on by the display of flags on September 12, 2001, the sound of the “Stars and Stripes Forever”, or standing for our National Anthem?

Some generations ago, the flag that brought about similar passions of our forebearers looked much different. Although red, white and blue, it bore no resemblance to the Stars and Stripes. In the years leading up to 1776, our Founders held an allegiance to their king, one they believed was chosen by God to rule. Historians tell us that even at the time of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, 40% of colonists remained loyal to the king, and the flag that represented him— the conjoined crosses of St. George and St. Andrew. Eventually, however, patriot ideals held greater significance than the King’s flag.

Those who founded our nation were radicals, free thinkers often not taken seriously and marginalized by those who did not agree with them– and who often disagreed with each other. But, these individuals shared a common purpose, that of freedom– and they risked their property, fortunes and lives in defiance of their king, of their nation, and of the flag. They sought liberty, and in doing so, created a new nation, free of government coercion and interference in daily life.

Adopted on June 14, 1777, Old Glory has since been a symbol not simply of the American nation, but more importantly, of the ideals that brought it about; of liberty and freedom. Perhaps over time, however, we have made an idol of the cloth itself, and have forgotten what it represents, often creating perceived crises to subvert those values.

Today, it seems that we justify virtually any new law or new idea by simply wrapping it in red, white and blue strips of cloth. State ownership of private industry, warrantless spying and data collection, and virtually any action that can be justified as ‘national defense’ seem to be the order of the day, while, ‘save democracy’ and ‘equal outcomes’ have become the rally cry for virtually any form of government coercion and extortion.

The flag is not big enough in which to wrap the transgressions and corruption that ensues as the colors become more significant than the ideals they represent.

It seems the nation’s leaders have never considered the definition of the word ‘freedom’, which Webster’s dictionary defines simply as “The absence of necessity, coercion, or constraint in choice or action.” These moral imperatives are what the Stars and Stripes has historically represented to the world. It is ours to determine if it will yet again.

This Flag Day as you see her wave, look beyond the strips of cloth and recognize the blood and sacrifice of patriots represented in each red stripe. Be reminded of the vigilance of justice in the blue field. See the moral purity in the ideals of freedom, liberty and self-determination, represented with each white stripe and star.

Let us place our hand over our heart and recommit ourselves on this Flag Day, not to a dyed piece of cloth, rather to what the star-spangled banner represents, resolving once again to defend the founding principles of the Republic with the zeal and determination of our ancestors, that we may forever ‘secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity.’

© 2026 Wes Westmoreland

Wes Westmoreland is president and founder of Westmoreland Printers, Inc., co-founder and vice-chair of Pinnacle Classical Academy, and a director of Polyhymnia, a think-tank advancing American culture through engagement with the aesthetic and philosophical foundations of Western society.

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