To the editor:

During the last Special Town Council Meeting held one week before the COVID-19 meeting restrictions were lifted, the Town Council voted to maintain its divisive flag ordinance. Despite their attempt to bury this in the middle of summer, they only succeeded in keeping the controversy alive by maintaining their current practice of flying unofficial political banners under the American Flag in violation the US Flag Code. 

Section 8(i) of the code states: “The flag should never be used for advertising purposes.... as advertising signs should not be fastened to a staff or halyard from which the flag is flown.” Section 7(f) of the code reads: “When flags of States, cities, or localities, or pennants of societies are flown on the same halyard with the flag of the United States, the latter should always be at the peak.”  It is our belief that the Town’s ordinance violates both aforementioned sections.

During this same meeting, the Council also claimed that the BLM flag they wish to fly is not associated with its national organization. They made this assertion despite the banner’s use of the group’s ubiquitous motto. If the Council wished to distance itself from this polarizing group, they could have selected a banner with a less incendiary slogan like “Every Black Life Matters”. However, for any banner to be flown in compliance with the Flag Code, it must meet the criteria of being a "Pennant of a Society". When one examines section 7(f), one notes that all flags listed are governmental subdivisions like “states or cities”. The code does not mention banners of private or political organizations. 

In addition, the BLM organization is a non-profit corporation. Flying it under the American Flag is tantamount to advertising. This violates section 8(i) of the US Flag Code. Does the Town really want to advertise for an organization that supports defunding police, the destruction of the nuclear family, and promotes Marxist Ideology? In fact, all the flags proposed to be flown for this upcoming year do not meet the "Societal Pennant" criteria. This is why supporters of the POW/MIA flag petitioned congress to have the law amended so that their flag could be flown legally. 

But following the flag code has never been a priority for the Council. They have been violating it for years by flying the flag of another sovereign state under the US flag every April. As much as we support bringing awareness to the Armenian Genocide, this is a clear violation of section 7(g) which states: “When flags of two or more nations are displayed, they are to be flown from separate staffs of the same height.”

To bring the Town in compliance with the US Flag Code, the Barrington United Veterans Coalition recommends that the Town Council select another prominent site, away from the Veterans Memorial, and erect two new flag poles: one for the American Flag and another for the “flag de jour”. This site could be designated as “Freedom Park” in honor of the 1st Amendment. This would be a small gesture in the way of reunifying a divided community.

Signed:

Luigi Carusi

Barrington

Paul Dulchinos

Barrington

William Groves

Barrington

Kenneth Lass

Barrington

Charles Peabody

Barrington

Frank Santoro

Barrington

Bart Stanzione 

Barrington

Al Girard

Barrington