Billy Bragg: ‘I love my country’s flag – but I won’t have it used to intimidate my neighbours’

You can’t expect to just have your meaning understood when you pick up a flag, says musician Billy Bragg, who also plays the guitar.

In celebration of their victory, delighted fans waved St. George’s and Union flags in celebration when the Lionesses won in Europe.

In a campaign that claims to be promoting patriotism, flags were raised once more in communities across the nation this week.

Every street in their Worcestershire village must be covered in flags, according to the Wythall Flaggers group. They have raised about £3,500 to cover costs through GoFundMe, saying: “This is NOT racist, never has been, never will be. Members of the community of all religions and ethnicities stop by and congratulate us on our work.

Billy Bragg, a musician and activist against racism, asked presenter Nick Abbott, “What is the motivation behind the Flaggers?” in an interview with LBC radio.

Billy asserts

What is the motivation behind this, the Wythall Flaggers’ question, in their case, is?

I am a patriot and I adore our flag. However, I object to my flag being used to intimidate my neighbors. That is really against my side.

Say they (the Wythall Flaggers) put up a community Facebook page and said, ‘we want to do a St George’s Day event. Everybody’s welcome, come on down. You know, we’re going to celebrate the fact that St George was born in Lebanon. He came here. Now it’s part of our story,’ that kind of thing. You can see the context with that.

You must ponder what the meaning of this is when it just suddenly appears a large number of flags?

Unfortunately, I believe there is a bit of a tinderbox around that topic given the current climate, where there is so much hostility toward those who have immigrated to this country without any papers. People outside the asylum hostels have witnessed that.

The demonstrators are obviously peaceful. It only takes one thing to start a vicious spiral of violence because they are so upset about the situation.

You are aware of the context if you notice St. George’s flag fluttering from the church tower in the countryside somewhere. Or when a World Cup is being held or something similar, you might notice it. And you are aware that the context supports sport.

What is the Wythall Flaggers’ motivation, though, in the case of this group?

Flags have meaning. It’s true of the flag of England, the Palestinian flag, and the trans rights flag as well.

Really, it’s all about context. And there is ambiguity in this situation, in my opinion.

And from what has been written on their GoFundMe page, it is obvious that their work is provocative. Unfortunately, you are aware that these things can quickly deteriorate.

For instance, I’ll explain my intent.

There will be many Palestinian flags at the Shepherd’s Bush Empire on September 20 when I hold a benefit for Palestinian aid there. On stage, I’ll probably have one.

Some people will say that they are supporting terrorism because they fly that flag. Although we are aware that our intentions are merely to provide humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza.

Therefore, you can’t expect everyone to accept your interpretation of a flag when you pick it up.

I believe that a person’s sense of identity is determined by their sense of who they are.

You may experience a little patriotic sentiment. You might feel patriotic or trooping the color when the football is on, or perhaps it was during the coronation.

I would say that a patriot who waving a flag is someone who firmly believes in the meaning of patriotism because they are immutable, never change, and always mean the same thing to them. While my patriotism is based on values, the values we hold as a society, tolerance and empathy, and accountability.

These are the issues that most appeal to me.

When I observe how poorly our country, especially our government, lives up to those values, I can see my patriotism.

So, I believe there are various forms of patriotism, and the Wythall flaggers seem to be trying to impose their particular kind of patriotism on everyone.

I don’t want our flag to represent a narrow definition of Englishness, where everyone is forced to adhere to an exclusive historical narrative rather than be inclusive.

England is a wonderful country. I’m proud of it whenever I visit because it’s one of Europe’s most diverse locations.

Look at any of our sporting teams, as well as our national sporting teams, to get a sense of what it’s like. We have a diverse population. That’s a very impressive accomplishment. And that’s what makes me feel patriotic.

Source: Mirror