I took down some flags and DH wasn’t happy

[LittleChopper]

On my commute today, I noticed someone had hung three large St George flags on a bridge coming out of our village. They have been popping up everywhere but this particular instance I thought “I’m not having that”. On the way home I pulled over and took them down.

when I got home and DH asked why I was binning three large flags I told him and he.. had some interesting opinions. He told me I shouldn’t be pissing off people in the village, that they have every right to hang an England flag in England, and that I’m being too political.

For a start, I would argue that I’ve always been quite strongly opinionated so he shouldn’t be surprised I did it.

Just as others have the right to their opinion I have mine. We have people in the village who are migrants… why should they have to look at that. It’s clear why they were hanging there given what’s going on at the moment and I’ve never see a flag hanging in the village in the decade we’ve been here so why else would they be there now.

I’m just so disappointed with it all. With the UK, with DH.

Next time maybe I’ll add to the collection instead. 🇬🇷🇮🇪🇮🇳🇦🇫🇧🇸🇵🇰🇪🇸🇸🇩🇿🇦🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

Not quite the same as zip tying them to motorway bridges to get all ratty is it?

This!
It’s lazy thinking and a logical fallacy to assume everyone flying a flag is a racist. I am honestly sick to the back teeth of people thinking they know the hearts and minds of an entire group of people when they are no one homogenous mass. It’s fuelling the division.

Oh come on. The whole flag rubbish is relatively new. Of course Buckingham palace has a flag but the Union flags in political interview is a trend borrowed from the USA and in the very few people had a flagstaff in their garden (we thought people who did were a bit odd).

Bullshit. Reform are the party of racists. They're the new version of the BNP. Who spouted trash similar to Enoch Powell.

Reform party candidate quotes:

"black people should "get off [their] lazy arses" and stop acting "like savages"'

"scum"

"I hope your family get robbed, beaten or attacked."

Not exactly welcoming of other ethnicities. And this wasn't just a Reform supporter. It was one of their candidates.

WhereIsMyJumper,well said
.Had anyone bothered to say that the Union Jack is on a ship!

Both sides are as bad as each other. The ones taking them down thinking they're much more intelligent when all they're doing is stopping it from dying out. Because people will continue doing it whilst it's getting people worked up. If people ignored it it would have died out by now.

Hope you also take down pride and rainbow flags, and pro-palestine flags, if you don't want others expressing their one-sided opinions.

We have people in the village who are migrants… why should they have to look at that.

Erm... because they live in England? If you migrated to another country, would you not expect to see their flags and national symbols about the place?

I think you have given the racists a fight and they will be delighted. Tearing the flags down is only likely to continue the craze. TBH I have only been concerned that a loose flag put up by some pissed-up bonehead will get blown onto a car windscreen and cause an accident.

By reacting the way you did you are giving our country's flag to them. The flags belong to all of us. In our village we put Union Jacks and England flags up during national celebrations like the Jubilee and coronations and I'm not a racist or 'concerned about immigration' and nor is anyone else I know.

I tend to agree on the whole. But that’s the case across nearly every political topic. Nobody wants to listen to the other side anymore. They want to attack or sneer at them. The flag removers don’t want to try and understand why the flags are being put up (by most) and the flag flyers don’t want to understand why it may upset some people to fly them. We’ve lost the art of debate and respectful discussion.

I wasn't speaking for you. I was speaking for the 50% of people who agree with OP. Try reading the quote history so you actually understand the context of my comment before posting your fatuous nonsense - and get a grip FFS. 🙄

I saw 3 flags on the school run this morning. None were pride, rainbow or Palestinian.

Other than during pride week or at a pro Palestine protest, I've NEVER seen those flags flying.

If it had been a year ago, I'd agree. Now, it's a symbol of racism. Frightening, when you're the target.

Interestingly, I'd advise her to leave him. Nobody sane wants to be married to a flag shagger.

The individuals putting them up aren't acting in accordance with the law, so the people taking them down are just following suit.

Why should immigrants to England not have to look at an English flag? How strange.

I can never really understand why trying to prioritise our own citizens who are unable to access basic services is racist.

Surely it is common sense to say the country is on it's knees and basic services are crumbling and not accessible half the time.

It's just common sense to say 'we are in a mess, we cannot take more people, we can't even cope with the ones we have. Nobody is doing anything about this issue so we, the small man in the street are trying to get this message to the goverment that we want them to act. Sort out the country and stop letting people in. If we ever return to being a wealthy nation with plenty for all then yes of course we can help others less fortunate. '

I mean for all those who are welcoming more people - would you feed the children 3 doors down if your own kids didn't have enough to eat?

The people on the boats are trying to do what's best for them ie get to a better life.

The people in our country should be doing what's best for them ie trying to fix all the failing services with not enough resource and too many users.

It seems we are not allowed to highlight we have a problem going on in this country and we need to say no more and start fixing it or that is 'racism'

So what should the man in the street do when he can't get a gp appointment because there are too many people trying to register with his surgery. Say oh goody I hope more people move here and register so the situation becomes even worse.

Yes I know some people who work for the NHS are immigrants and it makes sense to let people who have skills sets we need into the country as this falls under the 'looking after us' bracket. Letting in any Tom, Dick and Harry when our own citizens are struggling with food prices, watching their private rent go up, unable to go to the doctors is just bloody stupid.

That's what the flags are about. It's a cry for the goverment to do something.

I've never hung a flag. I've never been to a March. I do understand the message though.

OP - you have taken down the flags so not to offend the immigrants living in your village but you seem to have no problem invalidating the feelings of whoever put the flags up. They might well have lived in your village all their lives and are probably offended by your actions.

Flags have always been fine during celebrations. That's literally what they're for.

We've never been a country that just randomly flies the flag - it's for special occasions only. Hanging cheap tat off motorway bridges demeans what they actually stand for. Especially as we all know it's just to try and make non-white people feel unwelcome. The hard right have always tried to coopt the flag then claim they're just being 'patriotic', starting right back with Oswald Moseley.

Christ it’s a national flag. Why can’t people fly it? Mental to be taking them down. If migrants don’t like our flag they shouldn’t be here!

Yep at this time I agree, it is now the sign of racists and spreading hate.

During the jubilee etc it was great seeing all the flags flying as they were a sign of joy.

‘Not in my village’

Did you actually say that op!
Heavens above, it’s our national flag 😂😂

They're not 'flying' it. Hanging cheap tat off a motorway bridge isn't 'flying' the flag - you need a flagpole for that - it's just trying to make a statement about who's welcome in the UK and more specifically, who isn't.

That’s not really how it works.
Just because someone else breaks the law doesn’t give anyone else the right to do the same. If flags are illegally placed, it’s the authorities’ job to handle it, taking them down yourself isn’t “following suit,” it’s breaking the rules too.

You do know it’s not YOUR village 😂

What a peach you are, I am sure you are ‘one of those’ FB users too.

As far as law breaking goes, illegal tidying up is probably among the least worst offenses.