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Original poster

Children asking about the current influx of England flags…

181 replies

aperolspritzbasicbitch · 26/08/2025 17:56

How do you explain it?
children are 11 and 8, just walked through an area with a few houses that are all grouped together with a LOT of flags displayed, they asked what was happening, I said nothing is and they’ve asked why there are so many flags. I’ve tried to explain it but to be honest I don’t really understand it fully myself, and think I’ve just bumbled out a lot of rubbish that they don’t really get.
Any ideas on an age appropriate way? I’ve even looked at newsround for guidance 🤣 but nothing doing!

OP posts:
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Wishing14 · 26/08/2025 19:54

Oh wow - the future division that will be caused by some of your explanations to your children!!!

scatterolight · 26/08/2025 20:10

JacknDiane · 26/08/2025 18:36

Honestly @scatterolight, what a load of utterly nonsense.

Perhaps you could say what you feel to be nonsense?

HappiestSleeping · 26/08/2025 20:16

youalright · 26/08/2025 18:50

Because we live in England and should be proud of the flag we seem to be the only country in the world who isnt.

That isn't true either though is it? I would quite happily fly the union flag, or the St George's Cross as I am proud of the welcoming and inclusive country I live in.

The current display are not that, and so I would take my flag down so that I am not associated with them.

If these people were true patriots, I would assume that they would at least know which way up the union flag goes, but the majority don't seem to.

Wishing14 · 26/08/2025 20:28

I think with complex things like this we all need to be a bit less black and white. Say what you believe or feel and why, but explain that other people see it differently. Try and empathise and think why they might think differently. There are valid concerns and feelings on BOTH ‘sides’ of the debate, and within each side are many different points of view and experiences. It is ok to not have ‘the answer’. It’s politics, feelings and lived experiences - it’s ok to say it’s complicated. It’s not as simple as ‘racists’ and ‘good people’. Why cause more divide, more ‘us’ and ‘them’? The very thing you hate so much?

jeansgenie · 26/08/2025 20:33

It's for Women's Rugby, right?

JacknDiane · 26/08/2025 22:29

scatterolight · 26/08/2025 20:10

Perhaps you could say what you feel to be nonsense?

Show quote history

Your post from start to finish.

ShesTheAlbatross · 26/08/2025 22:31

beeautifullif3 · 26/08/2025 18:44

Omg these comments 😳 you could tell your children that England is a wonderful country to live in and we should all be proud to live here and like many other countries there's nothing wrong with displaying a flag and that is simply what these people are doing

Not all of them though.

Some of them (geniuses who filmed themselves doing it) have been arrested for shouting racist abuse while they demonstrated their pride in the country with a flag.

cariadlet · 26/08/2025 22:40

I would say that people fly the flag for different reasons:
Proud of their country.
Think there are too many immigrants.
Want to support England/GB/UK in international sporting events.

We can't tell by looking at a flag, why someone has put it up. People looking at the flags will assume one reason or another.

Some people look at the flags and feel proud of their country. Others look at them and feel upset or angry or anxious.
It's very complicated.

I think the above is a reasonable, child friendly explanation.
I haven't checked to see if there's anything on Newsround but that's usually good for explaining complicated issues.

Edited to say I have reread the op and have seen that you already tried Newsround.

Wishing14 · 27/08/2025 05:01

@JacknDianewhat is the point of saying something is nonsense and then providing no actual rebuttal? To be fair, in the comments there is a very strong overtone of disdain, looking down on people (I bet they can’t even spell … they don’t even know the way to hang it… etc). It’s these repeated, nasty, judgmental comments that you see on every thread that really show it cannot be ‘good’ and ‘bad’. Like it is ok to make certain comments and stereotypes about some groups of people but not others. That’s a logical flaw in the whole argument, surely! It seems especially sad that people are teaching their kids to think that way. I want my children to understand people think differently and we don’t have all the answers.

Wishing14 · 27/08/2025 05:08

Also, don’t forget the explanation that people have put them up because we live in a free country. You can say what that means and why it’s important. That comes first and before feelings of good or bad. Then explain why you think it is positive or negative and why you feel like that. Making clear others see it differently, and why that might be - like @cariadlet has suggested. It doesn’t have to be that hard. Kids are still curious and capable of thinking, and, hopefully, haven’t been moulded to think one way yet by their parents.

Clingingontosummer · 27/08/2025 06:38

aperolspritzbasicbitch · 26/08/2025 18:55

Sorry - but I don’t understand those of you that are saying it’s because they are proud of our country, when that clearly isn’t the reason.
if it was, they’d have had them up before now, wouldn’t they?
their intentions are clear.

Lots of people have suddenly decided to display flags to show they are proud of being British does sound a bit fantastical.

zaazaazoom · 27/08/2025 06:48

beeautifullif3 · 26/08/2025 18:44

Omg these comments 😳 you could tell your children that England is a wonderful country to live in and we should all be proud to live here and like many other countries there's nothing wrong with displaying a flag and that is simply what these people are doing

Are you so ignorant? Have you read the vile comments about wanting boat people to drown, Farage saying he will send people back to Afghanistan and Iran. My DD's best friend is an Iranian Refugee if her parents have been sent back, they would have been tortured, imprisoned and likely killed.

In some countries, it will be like sending Jewish people into the hands of the nazis deliberately.

History will.judge us.
I love England. I was proud of our relatively tolerant country but I am.not proud that we have fallen for populalism. That people cant see that Farage is all.about power and wealth for himself. He will dismantle the NHS, he will bring in laws that make the rich richer and destroy the welfare state. He will be pissing himself that he, a public school boy ex banker is seen as giving a single fuck about working class people.

YelloDaisy · 27/08/2025 06:54

Who is the working class nowadays?

Sandyshandy · 27/08/2025 06:54

Where are all these flags, I haven’t seen any?
Just tell your dc it’s a fashion and that people often copy each other.
Or if you want I suppose you could tell them that they should be deeply ashamed to be British (assuming they are) and that we are a uniquely intolerant and oppressive nation. Like a reverse British exceptionalism.
Because hearing that message (or feeling like that’s the message) + feeling totally ignored by the government is what has annoyed people and is causing them to fly their flags.

Perfectlystill · 27/08/2025 06:58

scatterolight · 26/08/2025 18:33

In a nutshell people are displaying the flag in what they feel is a rebellious act against a government which doesn't listen to them or, in fact, care about them in any way at all.

It is widely felt, because it's true, that the English flag is particularly abhorred by our Elites. Politicians and their footsoldiers in the media perceive it to be low class and indicative of a set of attitudes that they find, at best, old fashioned and, at worst, reprehensible.

The working classes know all this and the display of flags is how they stick their fingers up to the system.

Exactly this

PrincessOfPreschool · 27/08/2025 07:04

Sandyshandy · 27/08/2025 06:54

Where are all these flags, I haven’t seen any?
Just tell your dc it’s a fashion and that people often copy each other.
Or if you want I suppose you could tell them that they should be deeply ashamed to be British (assuming they are) and that we are a uniquely intolerant and oppressive nation. Like a reverse British exceptionalism.
Because hearing that message (or feeling like that’s the message) + feeling totally ignored by the government is what has annoyed people and is causing them to fly their flags.

Edited

Interestingly there is a whole road full of them right near my house and I was trying to work out why it was that road in particular, then realised... It's the main thoroughfare for a certain school in our area which attracts a large number of black children. 99% of the school kids go down that portion of road. None of the other roads round here have flags and they stop after the school - so it seems targeted. That really did make me angry. Most of those kids will have been born in this country.

Dolphinnoises · 27/08/2025 07:05

I think I’d say - firstly, there’s nothing wrong with our flag, it’s great. But that unfortunately racists often use the flag to mean they only want white people in the country. People can be awful, yes. There are some people coming over to the UK on small boats and it’s getting a lot of media attention. People are putting up their flags to say they don’t like it. That said, other people put up their flags because of the football so you can’t always tell why it’s up if there’s a big game on.

onlyoneoftheregimentinstep · 27/08/2025 07:12

beeautifullif3 · 26/08/2025 18:44

Omg these comments 😳 you could tell your children that England is a wonderful country to live in and we should all be proud to live here and like many other countries there's nothing wrong with displaying a flag and that is simply what these people are doing

Anyone who believes this is living on another planet.

Freysimo · 27/08/2025 07:17

aperolspritzbasicbitch · 26/08/2025 18:55

Sorry - but I don’t understand those of you that are saying it’s because they are proud of our country, when that clearly isn’t the reason.
if it was, they’d have had them up before now, wouldn’t they?
their intentions are clear.

What do you think their intentions are?

IHadaMarvelousTimeRuiningEverything · 27/08/2025 07:22

Sandyshandy · 27/08/2025 06:54

Where are all these flags, I haven’t seen any?
Just tell your dc it’s a fashion and that people often copy each other.
Or if you want I suppose you could tell them that they should be deeply ashamed to be British (assuming they are) and that we are a uniquely intolerant and oppressive nation. Like a reverse British exceptionalism.
Because hearing that message (or feeling like that’s the message) + feeling totally ignored by the government is what has annoyed people and is causing them to fly their flags.

Edited

And as a result of hearing that message (like most of the comments on this post) I wont be surprised when Farage wins the next general election🙄.

MikeRafone · 27/08/2025 07:23

How do you explain it when the football is being played and cars start appearing with flags and people fly flags?

IHadaMarvelousTimeRuiningEverything · 27/08/2025 07:25

Dolphinnoises · 27/08/2025 07:05

I think I’d say - firstly, there’s nothing wrong with our flag, it’s great. But that unfortunately racists often use the flag to mean they only want white people in the country. People can be awful, yes. There are some people coming over to the UK on small boats and it’s getting a lot of media attention. People are putting up their flags to say they don’t like it. That said, other people put up their flags because of the football so you can’t always tell why it’s up if there’s a big game on.

100%. My neighbour always has one up, has done for years. But to most people on this thread driving down the road and seeing it for the first time they would jump to him being a thick, racist 'knuckle dragger'. Madness.

fungibletoken · 27/08/2025 07:55

My DC are younger but to them I'd say the flag represents England and some people fly the flag when they want to celebrate something about it and others when they're not happy. Isn't it confusing/interesting how people can do the same thing and mean something different?

Anything more (e.g. "it's patriotic" vs "it's racist") risks a massive oversimplification that won't serve them at all.

GlastoNinja · 27/08/2025 08:00

KelsCommemorativeSausage · 26/08/2025 18:52

I'm not telling my 6 year old daughter, who is black, anything other than it's for sports. She's young enough to not notice much.

I’m so sorry that you’re having to protect your daughter from the actions of these half wits.