Flag Fighting

In the last ten years, I have discovered that my New Haven neighborhood is a weird little pocket of red. Maybe not all red, but blotchy like a raging measles infection.

Recently, a neighbor I have never met has taken it upon himself to install individual flags on almost every telephone pole up and down our main street. At least a mile’s worth of patriotic symbolism. It started with a handful and has steadily grown, including the telephone pole right outside my front door.

There is a neighborhood group on Facebook that occasionally crosses my feed. It is mostly where people post pictures of especially vibrant sunsets or the group of old men who play Bocce together in the park down the street. Sometimes there are complaints about the wedding venue on the beach and how loud their events can be.

Recently, a woman posted to ask about the flags. She was concerned that they might interfere with the power lines, especially during heat waves or windy storms. The response was awful. A lot of grown men all caps-ing her with demands that she thank the man who put the flags up, that she show some gratitude, that she is what is wrong with this country. Heaps of praise for the flagman and nothing but condemnation for the single mother of three who didn’t want her house to catch on fire or her power to go out.

Now every time I leave my house and drive up my street, I am staring at these flags. They are already showing signs of wear and tear, are already wrapped around power lines, wrinkled and flapping in the wind. I wonder what they will look like by labor day after summer storms and the bleaching effect of the summer sun. Will someone take them down?

The man who put the flags up made his own post on July 5th. He had gone to the sea wall the night before where every year there is a fireworks display over the water and people gather to watch, bringing blankets and snacks. He brought his own sound system and played patriotic songs at an uncomfortable volume and made a post, with a video, to complain about people who complained. Not everyone enjoyed his soundtrack. Again, people were screamed at and told to be grateful.

You know who this sounds like, right?

Yes, it’s the country’s 250th birthday. No, not everyone is in a celebratory mood.

I decided to post my own favorite flag images, a substack post to counteract the flag nonsense all around me. And then maybe we’ll just get to August already.

“Untitled (The Pequod)” (2014) by Robert Longo

“Untitled (Flag)” (1979) by Jean-Michel Basquiat

“Untitled” (1991) by Barbara Kruger

“What is the Proper Way to Display a US Flag?” (1988) by Dread Scott

Thank you for reading.