“Old Glory”
Needs a Makeover!
This past weekend, Americans celebrated the country’s 239th birthday.
But I wasn’t one of them.
The American flag, or “Old Glory,” as it is affectionately called, is one of the world’s most recognized symbols. And yet, despite its fame, too many fail to see that it is rich with contradiction and irony. According to the veterans’ organization, the American Legion, the color red symbolizes hardiness and valor, white equates purity and innocence, while blue represents vigilance, perseverance and justice. The Legion’s description of the flag’s colors gives me pause. That’s not what I think of when I see the flag.
In fact, I don’t see a flag at all. Instead, I see a blanket designed to cover up the past.
Here’s the Snapshot:
This is a quick list of activities conducted under the auspices of Old Glory, none of which have anything to do with valor, innocence or justice:
- It sanctioned chattel slavery for more than 200 years — which is defined as personal property to be owned for life;
2. Native Americans were “carried” to boarding schools for “conversion”;
The Land of Freedom and Independence?
How can I celebrate freedom today or tomorrow when just last month, the FBI refused to call the massacre of the nine people in an African American church in Charleston, South Carolina a hate crime?
How can I celebrate Independence Day when the police officer who choked Eric Garner to death was cleared of all charges?
How can I celebrate fireworks, when black churches continue to burn?
Until some kind of reconciliation and recompense from the federal government has been made for past sins against people of color, I cannot truly celebrate the “grandeur” of the country’s birthday. And until we reconstruct the flag itself, I cannot take pride in this symbol.
How About a Makeover?
When South Africa redesigned their flag after Nelson Mandela became president, it helped remove much of the stain of Apartheid for that country.
“It was difficult to imagine, back then in the days of negotiations, that this assortment of shapes and colors we had before us would become such a central part of defining and identifying a new nation,” South African author Cyril Ramaphosa writes in Flying with Pride.
“Few would have imagined, almost a decade ago, that this collection of colorful shapes could become such a potent symbol of unity and progress. But then fewer still would have thought that a country torn apart by decades of racial oppression could transform itself into a beacon of democracy and hope.”
A beacon of democracy and hope. To so many in this country, that’s what the American flag represents. I hope that someday I can be one of them, but until a sincere effort has been made to reconcile many of the ugly crimes of the past and present and a new symbol is adopted, Independence Day will continue to make me uneasy and disheartened.
I love the courage and conviction that Frederick Douglass displayed as he delivered a speech about his sentiments regarding Independence Day.
Watch the video of James Earl Jones reading that same speech Douglas gave in 1852.
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Chrystal Morris Murphy is a national community advocate and grants administrator with America’s Promise Alliance. Follow her on Twitter for more social commentary.
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