There is stuff around all the time about how the flag is now a symbol of bad things.
Both of these quotes are from the USA today this very week. There are plenty more if you look around. And it just gets more and more every year.
Quote: At times, the American flag can evoke emotions of shame and embarrassment for Beals.
“It makes me a little bit sad. I love having pride for this country, but there's definitely that moment of hesitancy now when I see an American flag,” she said.
Still, Beals believes the flag can represent values it’s long been associated with − saying this year’s presidential election will be a "fight for the flag.”
“I think it’s really going to depend on what the outcome is, and seeing what Americans are feeling. Right now, it doesn’t really feel like the flag represents freedom.”
Quote: Growing up in Georgia, the American flag reminded Kia Smith of the Fourth of July, family, and cookouts. Now 42, her experiences abroad and observing political movements have made her skeptical of wearing or displaying the flag.
Smith said she first questioned the flag when studying abroad in Tunisia in 2006. Following the United States’ declaration of its war on terror, she said people there felt the flag represented anti-Muslim sentiment – something she had to explain she did not hold just because of her nationality.
"As a Black woman in America, it was really interesting to be placed in a situation where I was seen as an American and confronted with a lot of the imperialism and colonialism that comes with being American,” Smith said. “Seeing what people outside of the United States, how they view the flag and American policy and values, was the first time when I had a moment of like, ‘what is this really?'”
Smith said she again felt like the flag did not represent her when it was flown by groups like the Tea Party, Make America Great Again Republicans, and Black Lives Matter counter-protesters.
“The only time I honestly feel tension is around the Olympics because there are so many incredible athletes and I want to have pride,” Smith said. “If I put on the U.S. flag, it’s not just about the games. There are deeper historical, cultural, and political messages behind that flag that don’t align with my lived values.”
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