But as great and pivotal as the Constitution is, in itself it has no power -- not the online reproductions and scans, not the many paper copies, not even the great original parchments. The Constitution is not a magical object.
The power of the Constitution lies in the fact that every American, every day, decides to follow it. It is the basis of our law, our mythos, and our society. Without it, everything falls apart. And yet it is only an idea, an ideal, without reality or meaning until given form and shape by the decisions, every day, of those who choose to follow it.
If we are to honor the Constitution, we have three choices. We can accept it as it was written, by white men who excluded women, persons of color, and those who did not own land. We can lawfully amend the Constitution, in order to refine its basic concepts, and in order to better serve citizens who, hopefully, are adapting to a more perfect concept of freedom. We can also interpret the Constitution and its amendments, with rational discussion and argument, and a knowledge of history, precedent, and the other writings of the Founders who often explained exactly what they were trying to achieve.
These are our only options. If we ignore the Constitution, if we push through its barriers and shatter its boundaries, we will destroy it. It is fragile; it was scratched onto parchment with ink and sharp pens, a very long time ago. And remember that it is powerless in any case. It exists in the mind and heart and actions of every American, every day, who believes that a free republic, based on the will of the people and subject to no tyrant, is a worthwhile endeavor. We are the Constitution; its power lies in us. If it is compromised, if too many lines are crossed and too many boundaries broken, the keystone of the reality of our civilization will break, and all will fall with it.
The words scratched on parchment with such hope, now protected behind glass, will fade with time, and break and scatter into dust, and none will remember.
