In Honor of Constitution Day

On this day, in 1787, the United States Constitutional Convention signed the Constitution. We now observe this day as Constitution Day. In fact, it's an official U.S. observance:

(a) Designation.— September 17 is designated as Constitution Day and Citizenship Day. 

(b) Purpose.— Constitution Day and Citizenship Day commemorate the formation and signing on September 17, 1787, of the Constitution and recognize all who, by coming of age or by naturalization, have become citizens. 

(c) Proclamation.— The President may issue each year a proclamation calling on United States Government officials to display the flag of the United States on all Government buildings on Constitution Day and Citizenship Day and inviting the people of the United States to observe Constitution Day and Citizenship Day, in schools and churches, or other suitable places, with appropriate ceremonies. 

(d) State and Local Observances.— The civil and educational authorities of States, counties, cities, and towns are urged to make plans for the proper observance of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day and for the complete instruction of citizens in their responsibilities and opportunities as citizens of the United States and of the State and locality in which they reside.

36 U.S.C. 106.

I have previously blogged about Constitution Day, and my annual "celebration" - I read the Constitution. For those of you looking for even further reading on the Constitution and the arguments over its ratification, I found the following extremely informative: The Federalist (Madison, Hamilton, and Jay), the Anti-Federalist Papers, and for those of you looking for something written after the 18th century, I enjoyed Pauline Maier's Ratification: The People Debate the Constitution, 1787-1788.

Image: I took that photo of Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Posted by Philip Miles, an attorney with McQuaide Blasko in State College, Pennsylvania in the firm's civil litigation and labor and employment law practice groups.