Thoughts On Flag Day
How Old Glory became a battlefield in the war over American memory
The star spangled banner bring hither,
O'er Columbia's true sons let it wave;
May the wreaths they have won never wither,
Nor its stars cease to shine on the brave.
May thy service united ne'er sever,
But hold to the colors so true;
The Army and Navy forever,
Three cheers for the red, white, and blue!
𝄆 Three cheers for the red, white, and blue! 𝄇
The Army and Navy forever,
Three cheers for the red, white, and blue.
—Thomas A’Becket, “Columbia The Gem of the Ocean”
“Old Glory”, “The Star-Spangled Banner”, “The Stars and Stripes” – these are all sobriquets for the flag of the United States of America, the anniversary of whose origin by Congressional fiat on 14 June 1777 we are celebrating as I write these words. The Congressional resolution: “That the flag of the thirteen United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new constellation.” This new constellation has waved – rarely challenged until 1860, and then again after 1865 – over the ever-expanding land of the free, her possessions, and overseas bases, diplomatic offices, and military cemeteries.
This Flag Day, of course, the streets of Los Angeles are filled with the red, white, and green flag of Mexico – a flag which, in its Imperial version, I am rather fond of. But rather than saluting the memories of the great Emperors Agustin and Maximilian, the Mexican flag-wavers were attempting to protest the current president – unintentionally lending support to those who share Mr Trump’s views of the dangers of immigration.
All of this was under the umbrella of a nationwide “No Kings” movement – again directed against the president, and couched in terms of the American myth that monarchy is an inherent evil. Of course, neither side employing similar narratives really knows what they are talking about – but why should they? Americans don’t need or want true history. This is sad, of course, because if there are remedies to our increasingly shrill national division, their roots must be sought in that very history.