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The recent allegation that the National Park Service banned the flying of the American flag in Denali National Park over Memorial Day weekend sparked a controversy that made national news. Park users complained to National Park Service officials about the 3-by-5-foot flag attached to a noisy construction vehicle, who in turn referred the complaint to the Federal Highway Administration, which manages the parkway. The Federal Highway Administration then advised the contractor, who complied with the request to remove the flag to “maintain the park visitor experience by reducing its visibility.”
For those who advocate for road safety and protect the natural experience of the thousands of people who visit the park, removing the flag made sense, given its size and the disruption it caused. For Senator Dan Sullivan, it was an “outrage that defies all logic.” For Fairbanks residents who organized a “motorcycle” to the park to protest the removal, and for those who praised them, it was a shameful attack on patriotism. In honor of Flag Day (June 14), it's a good time to shift the focus from flag-waving and events in the park to the much more important task of fostering respect for what the flag represents: America's democratic ideals and our unity as a free people. In this day and age, when both our democracy and unity are under continuous attack from within, it's a good time to question why many of our self-proclaimed patriots are waving the flag.
First, are they waving the flag for freedom? What freedom means and what freedom entails may be up for debate, but most of us recognize that as Americans we have many individual rights that most people around the world do not enjoy. Freedom of speech, assembly, and press allow us to express our ideas, gather with those we choose to pursue common goals, and receive the news of the world without censorship. These and other freedoms are based on the concept of government restraint, meaning that officials do not have unlimited power to do as they wish. But when top officials demonize those who express dissenting opinions or report unfavorable news, and call for abuse and violence against citizens with whom they disagree, respect for these freedoms is seriously endangered. If such attacks continue, what will likely happen? Citizens will be fearful and silenced, and freedoms will be lost.
Second, do they wave the flag and support our nation’s commitment to equality? Officially, our nation does not accept hierarchies of power and opportunity based on race, ethnicity, sex, religion, or national origin, and we do not refuse a seat at the table of prosperity based on prejudice. But Americans have long been bitterly divided over the question of who can be “equal.” In the not-too-distant past, we implemented Jim Crow laws to marginalize Black Americans and other people of color, allowed women to be denied education, employment, and other opportunities, and harshly penalized LGBTQ+ people for simply being themselves. Most Americans now acknowledge that these laws were harmful and exclusionary, and have made progress toward breaking them. But moving closer to the promise of equality has met with fierce backlash. Now, any effort to better understand the history and impact of centuries of discrimination is dismissed as the work of “radical left-wing wokeism,” and we are urged to abandon the goal central to our national identity: “equality and justice for all.”
Third, do they wave the flag for respecting the rule of law? Despite the jury verdict that the former president committed serious felonies, many Americans blame the courts and juries, not the misconduct. And they are silent about the former president’s long history of contempt for other judgments in American courts, including the felony convictions of five of his aides during his presidency, the more than 1,000 convictions his supporters faced for storming the Capitol, and the two civil judgments against him for defamation and falsifying business records. His behavior in and out of court has been contemptuous and mocking, and he routinely violates court orders to ensure fair proceedings. He has fought to postpone the three criminal trials he still faces so that the American public cannot see the evidence against him before the election. That his party, including our own Senator Sullivan, has joined the trend of criticizing our justice system rather than condemning the former president’s misdeeds, shows how sharply that platform has veered from “law and order” to lawlessness.
Fourth, do they fly the flag and support religious freedom for all? The Founding Fathers well understood that serious conflict and violence would result if the government officially tolerated some religions over others and persecuted people because of their beliefs. They chose to respect religious beliefs by creating a secular government committed to protecting all faiths from discrimination and keeping the affairs of church from those of state. But today, many who wear the American flag are Christian nationalists who argue that we are a Christian nation and can and should impose the Christian faith on everyone. Many rights we take for granted would be sacrificed in their envisioned theocracy.
Finally, do they wave the flag of democracy, that most important ideal? Our nation’s founders were acutely aware of the evils that would result under an autocratic ruler, the British King, and instead designed a government “of the people, by the people, for the people.” To prevent tyranny, they decentralized public power among the three branches of government, rather than concentrating it in one person. But it is becoming increasingly clear that many prominent Americans long for the role of the people to be diminished and the guardrails against tyranny to be removed. They tolerate the former president’s lies about the 2020 election and his willingness to ignore voters and disrupt the peaceful transfer of power. They accept his increasingly authoritarian views and debase themselves by bowing to his will, despite being fully aware of widespread doubts about his corruption and fitness. They promise to fill public offices with his loyalists and launch aggressive campaigns against anyone with the courage and integrity to oppose him. They claim to love their country, yet rather than defend the democracy to which we pledge our allegiance, they seek to recreate the tyranny our Founding Fathers fought against.
On this Flag Day, those who wave the American flag in honor of our American principles are true patriots. Those who wave the flag as part of the current movement to abandon those principles should find another flag for their cause. As we know now, the upside-down flag, the “appeal to heaven” flag, and the Confederate flag offer an alternative to a bleak future.
Barbara Hood is a retired lawyer and businesswoman who lives in Anchorage.
Opinions expressed here are those of the author and are not necessarily endorsed by the Anchorage Daily News, which welcomes a wide range of viewpoints. To submit an article for consideration, email commentary(at)adn.com. Submissions of under 200 words may be sent to letters@adn.com or click here to submit from any web browser. Read our complete guidelines for letters and commentary here.
