Most of us who grew up in the US have pledged our allegiance to the flag of the United States of America hundreds of times. We pledge our allegiance to the flag of a nation with liberty and justice for all.
That means liberty and justice are not exclusively for the people we like best, but for everybody else in the United States as well.
So let’s honor our pledge by voting for candidates who will protect liberty and justice for all, because we have pledged our allegiance to that concept over and over again.
All means all.
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A filet crochet panel featuring the Liberty Bell and the dates 1776 and 1918 inspired this quilt, And Justice for All. I crocheted the “AND BEYOND” piece.
I peeked into a possible future, where the United States has 52 states. How would the 52 stars be arranged on the blue background on the U. S. flag? The arrangement of our current fifty stars is very clever: 6 + 5 + 6 + 5 + 6 + 5 + 6 + 5 + 6 = 50.
What would a flag designer come up with for 52 stars? Hmm. Fifty-two equals 4 times 13, so I looked no further than the Great Seal of the United States, with its star comprising 13 small stars. The 13 stars and other items on the Great Seal refer to the 13 original colonies. I went with that design.
Normally I use buttons in a row or in other ways that don’t have to be precise. What to do? Make a template! I don’t remember whether I used Adobe Photoshop® or if I drew it with a ruler. Anyway, I punched a hole for each star, placed it on the quilt, and used chalk to mark the button locations. Luckily the chalk marks lasted until the last button was sewn in place, and possibly beyond, but at this point the chalk marks are hidden under the buttons.
I tried to represent ALL people, or at least as many as possible, through my choice of colors.
And Justice for All was finished in 2023. Techniques used were patchwork, quilting, crochet, and embellishment. Materials used were cotton fabric and thread and buttons.
For more information on the Great Seal of the United States, visit The Great Seal at the National Museum of American Diplomacy website.
