The council should be taking down England flags in public places?

I would sooner the council put them up, at least there’s a chance they might be done properly

Here it’s an mis-mash of sizes, patterns, styles, hung at all different levels. The ones that have been up weeks are now grey in colour, and looking very worse for wear.

We are not taking “the Mall” where the flags (hung for tourists) are well maintained …or displays in other Capital cities, that look great. They look a mess.

Hope a few “patriots” from round here, come and tidy things up .. but I doubt it.

We also had some scale a Grade 1 listed structure, to put flags on top of… which is bell-end behaviour.

thats not what England flags being put up at this particular moment is demonstrating support for though is it? But then everyone who gives a faux-naive "what's wrong with flying the flag of your country" wide eyed response knows that.

flags at this particular moment in time are being put up to signify anti-immigration sentiment

Lots of wilful ignorance.

If you were on holiday in Barcelona and Spanish or Catalan flags went up immediately everywhere after a wave of protests about tourism you would be being dense to not feel uncomfortable. The people putting them up would want you to see the flag and feel unwelcome.

Yes it's an English flag in England, but intention matters, and the intention here is not patriotism. White nationalism is not British and it does not make me feel proud.

The flag has been coopted to represent intimidation. It's unbelievably naive to suggest otherwise. Just look at who is funding it, the rhetoric behind it and the people putting them up. Just take a look at the daily mail yesterday and the single mum who didn't want a flag on her estate. The article and, in particular, the comments made me feel sick. Through inaction, the flag has been lost. You've let it represent something very dark and hateful and I guess, it now shows who is prepared for it to do so.

In England I would expect to see an England flag. If I went to France I would expect to see a French flag. If I went to Australia I would expect to see an Australian flag.
why can’t they be displayed?

So how do you tell the difference? Surely if everyone puts flags up, then it won’t be seen as racist, it’ll be seen as celebrating the country and the racists will just look stupid. That would be like if someone raised Palestinian flags. Are they doing it because they are anti semetic or are they Palestinian? So we’d better stop those too hadn’t we? Are people raising pride flags to support gay rights or to intimidate women at the moment? We can’t be sure so we’d better not raise those either had we? So it’s either we ban all flags or people can raise any flags.

You know why it makes people feel unwelcome.
Why would you continue doing something that makes quite a lot of folk feel unwelcome whether they live, work or visit here?
It seems to me though that people really enjoy this part of the Robinson Raise the Colours op - more than they like celebrating being English/British - not a great look really.
No one has objected to flags already flown - nice flags at full mast on buildings.
I’ve just been abroad and seen flags around, but not on lampposts half mast, and no one told me it meant they didn’t really want foreigners there. It’s completely different.

Quite - nothing wrong with a flag in your country’s honour.
But everything wrong with a flag in a far right racist’s honour - and yes they are, not even bought personally a lot of the time but crowdfunded and discussed on nasty little fb/sm groups.
As I asked someone earlier about pulling ladders away from a council worker - is that ok too? How ‘patriotic’ do we have to be over ‘our flag’?

For heaven's sake who cares about flags? There is nothing wrong if you choose to use a flag in your country's honour.

This might surprise you @fourfoxsakes but people like to honour their country despite its flaws, there is nothing threatening about it and I'm proud of the scientific advances we made, the architecture and (mainly) good and kind people

Why does it make you feel unwelcome? I don't feel unwelcome in Thailand for example because I see Thai flags flying

Which is fine, but knowing that the raising the colours thing started because of a racist intent, why would you fly a flag and make people think your motives are murky? Now is not the time.

I have no opinion on the Israel/palestine thing either way, to me it seems abundantly clear that there is fault and hate and anger on both sides, with good and bad people on both sides, the only side I’m on in that whole god forsaken mess is the side of the innocent people caught in an un-ending misery. And none of that has anything to do with the issue being discussed here, which is that this flag raising thing is the work of hateful racists.

You can't read minds though. And the people in this country aren't all the same. And don't all feel the same about our nation's flag.

Apologies if I singled you out unfairly.

It's not about the flag. It is not about the people and the area in which they live. It is the intention behind the act.

I love seeing them, especially in an areas when if you are white British, you are the minority. Makes me feel like I actually do live in England.

Another goady thread. No, leave them be.

That would mean you would apply the same warped logic to the Palestinain marches and those who fly the Palestinian flags.

The first one in London was organised a couple of hours after the Oct 7th attacks started. Jews have been made to feel intimidated and scared due to anti semetism shown the marches.

Therefore all the marchers must be anti semitic racists.

Is it just the George cross that makes you uncomfortable or do you have a general fear of flags?

I quite like seeing the flags

It would be great to post on sm how lovely it it is to see the flags flying for our England Ladies tomorrow!!

Maybe we all should

@fourfoxsakes You realise that some flags were up for the womens rugby team? The final is tomorrow and England are in it. No flags are not all there for the same reason and it's insulting to pretend they are. In some places there are very few to take down, the ones up have been there all year or for other sporting events and they are flying legally from flagpoles.

Some councils are taking flags down when installed illegally or in places where it is obviously with ill intent.

Our local flag lovers have a collection pot fund to buy flags 🙄.

It’s the lack of critical thinking for me….

I despair