WASHINGTON, June 29 — For Bruce Watson, the American flag has never been a complicated symbol. The 72-year-old writer in a small New England town has flown it for years, a straightforward emblem of national pride. “I’m very proud of our flag,” Watson said.
“It’s the symbol of ‘We, the People.’” But as the polarized nation marks its 250th birthday, Watson now worries his Stars and Stripes may need an asterisk. The calculus has changed.
The flag, he told NBC News, has become tangled up in the politics of President Donald Trump. “If we do fly the flag, we will also put out signs to make it clear that we are not MAGA,” he said. That tension is playing out across the country.
The American flag, hung on front porches or waved at parades, is now a symbol striped with many meanings. Polls suggest patriotism, national pride and optimism for the country’s future are all fraying.
Some readers told NBC News they plan to show their patriotism — and protest Trump — by flying the flag upside down. It’s a signal that the country is in distress. “Donald Trump has turned everything upside down, so it makes sense our flag should be upside down,” said Dina Bannick, 61, who lives outside Des Moines, Iowa.
“It’s a shame. We used to be a proud nation. Now, our country is in distress.” Trump supporters such as Dave Cavannah, of Monson, Massachusetts, questioned such protests.
Cavannah, a professional woodcarver, is so devoted to Trump that he is busy chiseling a statue of him. The broader stakes are clear: a symbol meant to unite has become another front in the nation’s political divide.
For some, the flag is not tied to any one party but is a way of life. For others, it can be taken as an endorsement of the current administration.
