Letters to the Editor
Republic or Democracy?
Every day across the United States, thousands of citizens recite the Pledge of Allegiance, including the line “and to the Republic for which it stands.”
The word “republic” is otherwise almost never used in speech, and rarely when referring to government. The word “democracy” is substituted for “republic” in legislative halls, universities, city councils, public schools, etc. If the words are the same, why don’t we simply use the word “democracy” in the pledge?
We don’t because they are different. Webster’s defines “democracy” as “government by the people: government in which the supreme power is retained by the people and exercised either directly (absolute or pure democracy) or indirectly (representative democracy) through a system of representation.” The U.S. government is usually referred to as a “representative democracy.”
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