Tag Archive for: U.S. Constitution

American Legion Oratorical Competition

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 by Paula Gail Benson

A few
years ago, a friend in the leadership of a local American Legion Post asked if
I would be a judge for its oratorical contest. I hadn’t previously heard about
this competition.

I knew
about the Boys State and Girls State programs the American Legion operated each
year, giving high school students a chance to learn about the branches of
government by becoming part of the process. In the past, these summer events
have taken place at our Statehouse where I work. I’ve found it inspiring to see
the young participants walking through the halls, making plans about proposed
legislation, and offering for mock elective positions. Hopefully, their experience
will encourage them to consider future participation in federal or state government.
Remember how President Clinton’s campaign proudly used his Boys State photo
visiting the White House and shaking President Kennedy’s hand?

Similarly,
since 1938, the American Legion’s oratorical contest has offered high school
students the opportunity to learn about the United States Constitution by
studying and preparing to speak about its provisions. Each year, the American Legion website lists the
selected subject matters for the competition’s focus. Students must present one
timed prepared speech without help aids. In the second round, they draw a topic
from a container and make an extemporaneous talk.

By
participating in the contest and placing in local, state, regional, and
national levels, students win scholarships. The year I participated as a judge,
we had only one student. We listened to her presentations so we could offer
suggestions for improvements as she moved on to the next levels in the
competition. She was phenomenal in the information she had compiled and her
poise in delivery. I was delighted to get to know her.

Since I
served as a judge, Heidi Schrek wrote and performed in a Broadway production
called What the Constitution Means to Me. The show was based on Heidi’s
own experiences going from one American Legion oratorical contest to another,
winning sufficient scholarships to pay her way through college. It ran both off
and on Broadway, winning the Obie award, being nominated for the Tony award,
and being a finalist for the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

In the show,
Heidi channeled her teenaged-self participating in the oratorical contest. She
dynamically expressed constitutional principles by making
analogies to her own life. Midway through, she stepped away from the structure of
the contest to provide more detail about her personal and family situation, giving
additional insight into how the rights and privileges guaranteed by the
Constitution influenced the quality of her life. The show’s final portion had Heidi debate a high school student on the question: “Should the Constitution be
Abolished?” Each night, the debate was staged anew with the audience encouraged
to express its opinion (cheers or boos) about what it heard and, in the end,
vote which side won.

One of the
Broadway performances was recorded for a wider audience viewing. In addition, the
written play will be released on December 1, 2020. It’s particularly fitting
for this time of year as we consider and are thankful for our history and all
that has offers us.

In the performance, Heidi mentions the book she
used to prepare her oratorical presentations: Your Rugged Constitution
by Bruce Allyn Findlay and Esther Blair Findlay (Stanford University Press,
1952). I found a used copy of the volume and ordered it. While it does not
contain the most recent amendments, it remains a strong statement about the
“living” document that is the basis for our laws.


Learning about the DAR and the Constitution

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by Paula Gail Benson

I remember hearing about the DAR or Daughters of the American
Revolution most of my life. While I had no family who were members, I grew up
in South Carolina, the location of 200 Revolutionary War battles. As a child,
my parents took me on a trip to Washington, D.C. and Virginia to see Monticello, Williamsburg, and Mount Vernon, which was
restored by a South Carolinian, Ann Pamela Cunningham, in the 1850s.

Ann Pamela Cunningham
Cunningham grew up in Laurens, South Carolina. As a
teenager, she was crippled from a riding accident. She never married. During a
time of mounting discord between the states, she devoted herself to raising
money and awareness about the condition of the first President’s home and appealed
to women throughout the nation to help in the restoration effort. With help, she
raised the funds to buy the property and established the Mount Vernon Ladies
Association, the oldest historical preservation society in the United States.
For more information see: https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/ann-pamela-cunningham

Theodosia Burr
Last week, a dear friend, Gini Abee, invited me to
attend a meeting of her DAR chapter, located in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and
named after Theodosia Burr, the daughter of Aaron Burr and wife of South
Carolina Governor Joseph Alston. (Musical theater enthusiasts will recognize the name
from a beautiful song in Hamilton.)

The
chapter’s projects include historic preservation, education, and commemorative
endeavors. Their program had a “Conservation Minute,” endorsing a “no straw
September” campaign to help eliminate the environmental effect of discarded
plastic straws, and a “National Defense Minute,” highlighting the forever
stamps to be released in February to honor military working dogs. Please check
out the chapter’s activities on their website: https://www.myrtlebeachdar.org/

I particularly enjoyed the presentation given by
author and constitutional scholar Ron Gragg, who spoke about the work of the
Constitutional Convention and the concerns arising from incorporating the principles of
the Declaration of Independence into the Constitution with care in order to
balance the power of the government with the rights of the individuals. He described George Washington, aged fifty-six when elected President, taking the
oath of office. Gragg said that Washington added the words “so help me God” and, at
the end, bent to kiss the scriptures where he had placed his hand.

What I did not realize was that the Constitution Convention
met for the last time and signed the draft Constitution on September 17, 1787. In
recognition of this anniversary, the Myrtle Beach Chapter will gather to ring a
bell thirteen times, for the original thirteen colonies.


The meeting was a
delightful celebration of the Constitution combined with efforts to help future generations understand the importance of that
document and the history that created it. I’m very grateful to Gini and the
members who welcomed me so warmly. And, this week, I’m proud to join with them
in remembering the signing of the Constitution of the United States.

Gini Abee and Paula Gail Benson (Photo by Michelle Cox)