Ah, the idealism of youth. It’s a period where each of us realizes later on that we thought we knew much more than we actually do. When it comes to Flag Day, this definitely seems to be a concept that holds true. It was just prior to flag day last Monday when Campus Reform reporter Ophelie Jacobson visited the University of Texas at Dallas in order to interview students and find out what they believe about just what the American flag symbolizes.
It was definitely an epiphany for her, to say the least. Not only did she find out that no, these students do not know very much about Flag Day, but she also found out that most of the interviewees didn’t have that high of an opinion about Old Glory to begin with.
A Wide Range of Opinions
Jacobson began simply by asking one student just what came to mind when he saw the American flag, and needless to say, the response she received was a doozie: “There are a lot of things that come to mind. First of all, war. Second, what comes to mind would be the land that we have taken from the Native Americans, so that is definitely unfortunate, too. And it’s just really terrible that we have done all of these things, and this flag reminds me of that, of all the sins we’ve committed against others.”
This pollster then asked if this individual if they agreed with the other students who have said that they think the flag symbolizes racism, oppression, and genocide, and he replied, “Yes, wholeheartedly. We’ve done so much under that terrible banner. The whole patriotism does nothing but sweep it under the rug, that narrative of oppression, racism, and the like all goes under that rug.”
This pollster then proceeded to talk to a female student, and she agreed with the male respondent wholeheartedly.
“I guess I just don’t look at the American flag that positively,” she began. “I do look at it negatively. I don’t agree with what this country was founded upon entirely, and there was a lot of injustice and a lot of genocide. Also, I see a lot of flags on church grounds, and well, honestly, I don’t see that as trustworthy, ‘cuz I just don’t like the idea of tying politics with religion, and that is something that this country, even today.” Yet another male responded to her questions, saying that he believed that the “absolute love of the American flag was very obviously correlated to things such as extremism and nationalism.”
Finally, another female student said that she “definitely believes that the American flag is being used a racist symbol….you see people show up to, like, former President Donald Trump rallies with their flags, and they are waving it and screaming it in people’s faces, making it obvious what it means to them.” By the way, a little side note here, but if you are getting nauseated with how much these young people are misusing the word “like”, don’t worry, you aren’t alone!
What Else?
Not surprising, there were actually quite a few who mistook the flag day on June 14th for Juneteenth on June 19th.
Additionally, the first male student that was interviewed was asked whether Flag Day should be celebrated, and he replied with a terse and obnoxious “F***** no.”
Finally, the female student who disagreed with American flags being on the grounds of church buildings also said that while she believes that people are free to celebrate flag day if they choose, she wouldn’t personally do it because she “doesn’t entirely love this place as much as other people do.”
Boy howdy! What do you think about how indoctrinated these young college students seem to be?