 
Assembly Resolution No. 581
 
BY: M. of A. Solages
 
        COMMEMORATING June 14, 2017, as Flag Day
 
  WHEREAS,  The  American  Flag, symbol of the Republic for 241 years,
has undergone many changes over its history; the current 50-star version
was raised for the first time officially at 12:01 a.m., July 4, 1960, at
Fort McHenry National Monument in  Baltimore,  Maryland,  heralding  the
admission of our 50th state, Hawaii; and
 
  WHEREAS,  The  first  colonial flag to represent all the colonies is
believed to have been raised on Prospect Hill in Boston at the Battle of
Bunker Hill; this flag, "the Continental Colors"  or  "the  Great  Union
flag,"  bore the cross of the British flag in the upper left corner with
13 alternating red and white stripes extending horizontally; and
 
  WHEREAS, The "Stars and Stripes"  originated  as  the  result  of  a
resolution  offered  by  the  Marine Committee of the second Continental
Congress at Philadelphia, and adopted on  June  14,  1777;  it  read  as
follows:    "Resolved:  that  the  flag of the United States be thirteen
stripes, alternate red and white; that  the  union  be  thirteen  stars,
white in a blue field, representing a new constellation"; and
 
  WHEREAS,  The Great State of New York has a unique connection to the
American Flag because it was flown for the first time on August 3, 1777,
at Fort Stanwix, in the present-day City of Rome; and  "Old  Glory"  was
first  flown  "under  fire"  three days later, on August 6, 1777, at the
Battle of Oriskany;  that  battle  being  a  decisive  victory  for  the
American  Revolutionaries,  stopping  the  British occupation of the New
York Colony in an attempt to divide the Union; and
 
  WHEREAS, The American Flag has had many charming legends attached to
it over the years, including the story that the first flag was  sewn  by
Mrs.    Betsy Ross in June, 1776, at the request of a committee composed
of George Washington, Robert Morris and  George  Ross;  this  story  was
first  made  public in 1870, by a grandson of Mrs. Ross; in addition, it
is reputed that the flag was designed by Francis Hopkinson, but when  he
attempted to have Congress remunerate him for his services in 1781, they
refused; and, it is also said that the flag was first called "Old Glory"
by  William  Driver, a sea captain from Salem, Massachusetts, who raised
the flag on his brig, the "Charles Doggett", in 1824; and
 
  WHEREAS,  Wherever  and  whenever  it  is   displayed,   the   first
requirement  for  flying  the  flag is that it be flown with respect; it
should only be flown in  good  weather,  on  all  holidays  and  special
occasions,  and  on  official buildings such as schools when they are in
session, post offices, courthouses and the like; it should generally  be
flown  from  sunrise  to sunset and at full staff; if it is displayed at
night, it should be properly illuminated; and, on Memorial Day it should
be flown at half staff until noon and then at full staff; and
 
  WHEREAS, The flag of the United States has inspired  us  in  battle,
reassured  us  in  times  of peace, and comforted us at moments of great
national grief; and
 
  WHEREAS, Flag Day was first celebrated in 1877,  the  centennial  of
the U.S. flag's existence; and
 
  WHEREAS,  Flag  Day  was officially established by a proclamation of
President Woodrow Wilson on May 30, 1916; while Flag Day was  celebrated
in  various  communities  after  Wilson's proclamation, it was not until
August 3, 1949, that President Harry S. Truman signed an Act of Congress
designating June 14th each year as Flag Day; and
 
  WHEREAS, In the words of President Wilson, "This flag which we honor
and under which we serve, is the emblem of our  unity,  our  power,  our
thought,  and  purpose  as a nation. It has no other character than that
which we give it from generation to generation. The choices are  ours.";
now, therefore, be it
 
  RESOLVED,  That  this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
joyously commemorate Flag Day, June 14, 2017, fully confident that  such
commemoration  clearly  illustrates  the  eminence and importance of the
American Flag.
Commemorating June 14, 2017, as Flag Day

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