To the editor:

After watching soon-to-be citizens take the Oath of Allegiance at a naturalization ceremony, I began wondering what my civics IQ might be. Would I be able to pass the U.S. citizenship test?

Out of curiosity, I went online and reviewed the practice questions on the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website. Here are a few sample questions:

• What is one right or freedom from the First Amendment?
• How many amendments does the Constitution have?
• Who is the chief justice of the United States now?
• The House of Representatives has how many voting members?
• What did Susan B. Anthony do?

It really wasn’t a surprise that I’d forgotten the answers to many of the questions on the test. I would probably need a tutorial to pass the test today.

While reading the questions, I was reminded how unique our form of government is. Is it a republic or a democracy? (Not such an easy answer, I discovered.)

I’m in awe of the creative minds that produced the U.S. Constitution all those many years ago (signed in 1787). It’s a living document that can be changed (amended) to reflect changes in our society.

I’m also reminded how vulnerable our democracy is, although I’ve only come to realize this in recent years. We cannot take our form of government for granted; there are no guarantees we will keep our democracy without constant vigilance.

So how do we protect our democracy?

1. Stay informed by seeking out information on issues and candidates from reliable sources.
2. Vote.

We head to the polls on Nov. 5 (or sooner with early voting). Let’s all do our part to protect our democracy by doing our due diligence and then voting.

Bonnie Grenier
Sagamore Road
Marblehead