#TakeBackTheFlag
It's Not Theirs. It's Mine. It's Yours. It's Ours.
At an event in California two years ago, I asked how many of the crowd flew the American flag outside their house? Not a hand went up. “Why?” I asked. The answer was disheartening, but not surprising. They were afraid that their neighbors, Northern California after all, would think they were Republicans or Trump supporters.
In a full red-blooded patriotic rant I said, “It’s not their flag! It’s MY flag. It’s YOUR flag! It’s OUR flag!”
First, let’s recap what the American flag is.
The flag of the United States is a symbol of freedom before which Americans recite the pledge of allegiance.
The flag's 13 red and white stripes represent the 13 original colonies. Its 50 white stars on a blue background represent the 50 states.
Each of the colors on the flag has a meaning:
Red: valor and bravery
White: purity and innocence
Blue: vigilance, perseverance, and justice
A star is added to the flag when a new state joins the United States. The flag was last modified on July 4, 1960, when Hawaii was incorporated as a state.
From USA.gov
Before I move on, does Donald Trump represent anything the red, white, or blue stand for? Not. A. One.
What isn’t the American flag?
ANYTHING else; including the so-called “no quarter” flag, flown by militia-types to indicate that in a coming civil war, opponents will be shown no mercy.
I can say I understand why some people wouldn’t fly the American flag in today’s hothouse political atmosphere. But I disagree with ceding patriotic symbols to those that don’t believe in the tenets of what Old Glory stands for.
What does the flag stand for?
Sure, there is the symbolism around the colors red, white, and blue. The stars, and stripes, too. Yes, some see the flag flying and think about all the times we have not lived up to our national ideals. That perspective is in stark contrast to how most Americans see our most visible national symbol.
According to a 2022 YouGov survey, 77% of all Americans have a ‘very positive’ or ‘somewhat positive’ view of the flag. This includes 72% of Democrats and 76% of Independents and 94% of Republicans.
DEMOCRATS: #TAKEBACKTHEFLAG.
It’s waiting there for you. Your voters and swing voters revere the flag by overwhelming numbers. Do not shy away from iconography so ingrained and popular with the electorate. In fact, to deny the flag’s centrality to American political social life and indentity pushes voters away rather than rallying your base.
If we know that a vast majority of Americans love the flag, we should display examples of Trump, MAGA, and conservative extremists misusing it, or in the case of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, intentionally flying the flag in an un-patriotic* and un-American manner.
Other banners, including Black Lives Matter, the Trump campaign, and the confederate battle flag break down on hard-partisan lines. In a divided country in the midst of a divisive campaign, pro-democracy forces must claim those symbols that bring people together under a forthight and ubiquitous symbol.
If you’re going to fly a flag to show your support for a particular group, fly Old Glory, too to show you support America as more than a country, but as a grand idea, yet to be realized, but still alive and well.
It’s important to make a distinction between patriotism and nationalism. Patriotism, as I define it, means you love your country despite its shortcomings. It means that you want to fight to protect the nation from those, like Donald Trump, who would take us down a dark path from which it will take years, if not decades, from which to return.
Nationalism is predicated on blood, soil, race, and unfettered power of the few over the many: This is the essential essence of Trump and MAGA. They wave the American flag not to raise all of us up, but to hold down those that disagree with them.
As we swing into our next American summer, the red, white, and blue will fly high and proud outside homes, over parks, and in public spaces across the country. When you see her, think not of what most upsets you, but your aspirations for our nation. Take what worries you about flying the flag and turn it toward what you want Old Glory to represent.
Just as we fight for our values, we must also fight for the symbol of those values. In 2024, we start by taking back our flag.
News and Notes:
Please check out my appearance on the American Friction podcast. We talk getting in Trump’s head, targeting soft Republican voters, and what comes after the Trumpocene Era.
Also, listen to Greg Sargent’s terrific conversation Joe Biden’s campaign pollster over at The New Republic.
Thank you Reed. I have put a small US flag in my garden for the holidays the past 8 years, instead of my large one that I used to fly from its holder on the garage. Like others, I’m nervous that people will think I’m supporting MAGA. It’s weird to feel so embarrassed to fly our own country’s flag. However, I do.
The psychological damage Trump, Trumpism, Putin, Bannon, Christian Nationalists, etc have done to ALL of us, cannot be underestimated. The feelings are real and deep. It’s as if our country has been kidnapped. In essence, the Big Lie “Stop the Steal” is the biggest form of projection and gaslighting.
MAGA has tried to steal the country from the rest of us
Thank you again for writing this.
I live in a Republican stronghold in Florida and from what I’ve seen, people flying Trump flags rarely fly the American flag. Their allegiance is to the man, not the country.