Would you fly a flag for your country?

The 60s were the time of resurgence of Plaid Cymru in Wales with Gwynfor Evans finally winning Carmarthen in spite of it being in the mainly Labour South, as Casdon says the 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 was mainly for rugby down there.

Here in north Wales it was an automatic assumption that Welsh 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿/Welsh speaker meant Welsh Nationalist! It was deemed a slur by Labour/Liberal and Tory supporters!

All of that has gone now due to everyone using every opportunity, sporting, cultural etc to wave the 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 - Cool Cymru was a thing just like Cool Britannia 🇬🇧

Mt61

Well round here the flags flying high & proud, from one end of the town to other. More have been added in the last two days. It must be costing a fortune.
I have to say though, it’s great sight to see.

I must say, I don’t like flags hanging from windows or roundabouts being painted for the tax payer to pay to have it removed, apart from that it just looks a mess.

I don’t much like flags hanging from windows, but installing a flagpole comes with problems.
Re painting in roundabouts and crossings? Once they’d allowed painting of rainbows, hanging of pride flags etc, or even endorsed graffiti by Banksy, who’s to say what is right and what isn’t.

I don’t think Banksy has painted on road signs or crossings has he? Regardless, I’m against anything defacing the highway, as I’ve said previously. Personally I think that it is very clear, if it is a part of the standard provision for roads it should not be tampered with in any way. In fact it’s as black and white as a zebra crossing.

I don't think there's any comparison between the Nationalism of the Scots and Welsh and those who proclaim themselves to be English nationalists. I was born in England but consider myself to be British, I don't feel the need to assert my "Englishness" because basically I live in the most influential part of the United Kingdom. IMO flag waving English Nationalists are basically racist people trying to legitimise their racism. I'm always slightly amused by people talking about "English culture" again to legitimise their racism, google "English culture" the AI result is hilarious and certainly doesn't describe me or anyone I know!
Britain has been a diverse, multicultural country for a very long time, immigrants have enriched us, often initially doing the jobs that no one else wanted to do. They have been entrepreneurial, hard working and have encouraged their children to use education to improve their status in society. It's no accident that so many immigrant families have children who are doctors, lawyers, accountants and members of other prestigious professions. Yet, some in our population will seize upon the actions of a single person or a group of people, who behave very badly committing crimes that by anyone's standard are appalling, as being representative of a whole population of people with a particular ethnicity, when it is clearly, completely ridiculous. Bad people exist in every ethnic group including white people who have been born here.
So if you want to wave your St George's flag, by all means do but be aware that many people will see it for what it has become ie a declaration of xenophobia and racism not an attempt to reclaim it as a symbol of national pride.

But the isssue there is, that many probably including me don't see those who shout racist or nazi as the 'good guys so how those people judge others doesn't really worry me greatly.

Galaxy I'm not talking about good guys and bad guys. I'm just talking about how some people including me think about people who call themselves English Nationalists and wave a St George's flag. I see them as racists and so will many other people, I'm not claiming to be a "good guy" just expressing my opinion like everyone else on this forum. I'm sure people can be racist but still be good people in other ways although I was obviously disturbed by 40% of those arrested at the events following the Lucy Connolly tweet had a history of domestic violence. I count them as violent, racist wife beaters!

Galaxy

But the isssue there is, that many probably including me don't see those who shout racist or nazi as the 'good guys so how those people judge others doesn't really worry me greatly.

I highly doubt it worries them what you think of them either, that’s the whole point really. Everybody thinks they are right, and nobody is bothered what anybody else thinks!

Who is shouting racist and nazi please?

2 groups of people shouting at each other never goes well.

There has been a discernable tip into emboldening racism.

StripeyGran

Who is shouting racist and nazi please?

2 groups of people shouting at each other never goes well.

There has been a discernable tip into emboldening racism.

Because, alas, it seems to be a vote winner. And politicians are following Trump. What have we come to in this country .

StripeyGran

I think we are in very dangerous territory talking about Afghanis as if they were one homogenous mass.

Thanks to Farage and his ilk, this race is the latest to be on the receiving end.

Funny how we don't talk about the Ukrainians or the HK Chinese in quite the same way. I suppose there are no criminals or scroungers amongst them maybe.

What are you getting at here?

Just had a message from my partner to say that the flags in Long Eaton were organised y a man called Singh who had been jailed a few years ago for assaulting a shop worker. Has this country gone mad?

Maybe if all reasonable people who are proud to be English flew the flag it would take away the constant claims that flag flyers are far right and racist.
It’s sad when we are too afraid to fly our national flag as a sign of being English for fear of being labelled far right or racist.

Why does anyone need to fly a flag to show they are English? I'm English, my neighbours are English, one of my neighbours is Welsh but no one feels the need to show anyone where they were born because we all live together in one community.

You don’t need to, but it’s a shame that people think only ill intentioned people would want to do it.
There’s such a lot of flag flying at the moment by people wanting to be inclusive-but actually being exclusive. What’s one more?

The trouble is when far right groups are funding flag flying how do these "well intentioned people" show they are not like the "ill intentioned people". Perhaps the best way is to not fly flags. If well intentioned people have not felt the need to fly flags before, why on earth start now?

Maybe they want to do it now to show they’re proud of being English. After all you can wave a flag to say you’re proud of being almost anything without being accused of being far right etc. etc.
But waving an English flag and out come the accusations.
Why do I see Welsh Flags in Wales and Saltires in Scotland? Are they all far right and racist too?
Shocking if they are, because that’s been going on for ages.

To answer the OP, if I was inclined to fly a flag I’d have done it years ago, my patriotism is as it’s always been.

Mollygo

Maybe if all reasonable people who are proud to be English flew the flag it would take away the constant claims that flag flyers are far right and racist.
It’s sad when we are too afraid to fly our national flag as a sign of being English for fear of being labelled far right or racist.

The reason I don't fly a national flag is not because I'm afraid. It's because I don't want to (along with the majority of the country so it would appear).

MayBee70

Just had a message from my partner to say that the flags in Long Eaton were organised y a man called Singh who had been jailed a few years ago for assaulting a shop worker. Has this country gone mad?

Nice guy!

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-24580970

Yes, it is the same one. I cross checked with some pictures of him putting flags up.

Well Vance has had a dig now... he has criticised the people who criticised the flags. (The Telegraph).

JD Vance has told campaigners to “push back against the crazies” who take offence to flying the St George’s flag...

Meanwhile Reform has been taking them down...

Durham county council issued a statement on X on Friday saying that while the council “understand and respect the community’s desire to express national pride, celebration, or remembrance, it is important to ensure such expressions do not compromise public safety”.

The council claimed it had been “left with no choice but to remove bunting” after a risk assessment found that “rope involved was so strong that, had a high-sided vehicle driven into it, the poles it was attached to could have been pulled down”.

The statement said the council’s “priority remains ensuring the safety and integrity of the highway network, while being mindful of, and responsive to, the communities we serve”. It encouraged residents “to consider safer and more appropriate locations for flags or other displays that do not involve highway infrastructure and conform to all appropriate standards and regulations”.

Maybe Vance should be more concerned about yet another school shooting .

Well, you would think so!

I am in that county, that is from a much longer statement that was clear it was one particular flag they were taking down. I actually thought it was a sensible statement and I don't support reform.

Casadon - banksy - defacing public street sign: encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRj4lFWti27KS50InXs-KKx_AIsybbJfubX1SDqNQXonUFbbMs4VfSoTss&s