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Bridget West is a former therapist who lives in Springfield and Chicago. She wrote this column for the Chicago Tribune.
My kids and I were in a hurry to get to the lake, and I ran into a gas station looking for a hat. My only options living in the Midwest were hats saying “Guns Save Lives” and “Make America Great Again.” The only somewhat subtle hat was an all-black hat that had the American flag on it. In the aftermath of the 2020 election controversy, I hesitated because I didn’t want to support the election deniers. I was desperate, so I bought it anyway.
As soon as I got into the car and passed out the Gatorade, my kids all said, “Mom you can’t wear that hat! That’s a Trump hat!”
Shocked and saddened, I asked them, “What makes this a Trump hat? It doesn’t say his name, have his image, slogan or even reference the Republican Party.”
My very liberal teenager said, “Ugh, it has the flag on it.” My younger kids agreed.
They are not wrong. Since 2016, onetime President Donald Trump and his most adamant followers have appropriated and, in some cases, degraded the American flag. The flag used to represent all Americans — Republicans, Democrats, independents, and men and women of all faiths, races and religions.
Since the advent of Trumpism, our flag has been desecrated with Trump’s face on it. An idol on the flag should alarm people more than a football player taking a knee during the national anthem.
During Trump’s presidential campaign, his supporters showed their support using the biggest, most obnoxious versions of the flag. Many flags had the words “Make America Great Again” and Trump’s face. They also had references and slogans to Second Amendment gun rights.
However, the giant flags that read “I only trust and believe in Trump and Jesus” alarmed me the most. There’s a lot to unpack there. First, are those really the only people a supporter trusts in life? Second, I’m pretty sure Jesus, the son of God, did not give permission for the use of his face, especially considering that kind, spiritual man would not have shared the beliefs of these adamant supporters. I can hear him from heaven shaking his head and saying, “Forgive them, God, they know not what they do.”
As a spiritual person, I find those flags offensive to my beliefs about God. Trump and Jesus shouldn’t make it into the same conversation, let alone be portrayed as allies on a flag.
I want my flag back. I want to associate the flag with all U.S. citizens, not just the loud Trump supporters or the Republican Party. My grandfather was a medic in World War II in a Nazi camp and was shot three times protecting our country under that flag. As was the case for many other veterans.
Freedom is not free. We collectively earned the right to hang an American flag, no matter the party. I’m still a patriot, and I love this country even though it needs work. Real change comes from within. If you hate this country, I challenge you to be a voice of change rather than complain with no plan or make a useless threat to move to Canada. (We have all done that.)
It saddens me that my children now associate the flag with a former TV show host who manipulated his way into the presidency. To be fair, all politicians are guilty of being manipulative. Trump was just exceptionally good at it.
So, I want to start a movement to take “our” flag back. I’m going to hang one in my front yard, even though I’m a Democrat. And I’m not going to take the easy way out and fly it with a gay pride, sports team or peace flag. I’m just going to fly the American flag.
I think everyone who sees the flag in a negative light because of Trump should do the same. Start a movement of sharing our flag. One country — maybe or maybe not under God. (We can work that part out later or let people decide privately. Freedom of religion, right?)
If anything, it will confuse Trump-loving neighbors. Maybe they will come to realize that we are all Americans, even if our beliefs differ and Fox News tells us we aren’t true patriots.
The differences between us are really slim compared to what we have in common as Americans.
It’s the United States of America, and every citizen deserves to fly our flag.
