Letters to the Editor: What country’s flag should protesters wave at immigration rallies? Readers debate

To the editor: I got chills reading Gustavo Arellano’s column explaining why immigrant-rights protesters wave the flag of Mexico or other foreign countries.

I spent 31 of the best years of my life teaching bilingual classes in Lynwood. My students were mostly from Mexico; others were from El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Honduras. I chose to fly my Mexican flag in my classroom for everyone to see. My tricolor brought smiles to the faces of my students, their parents and their grandparents when they glanced around my room and spotted my flag.

They would inevitably ask me if I was Mexican. I told them I was not, but I just liked the way it looked on my wall.

Thank you, Mr. Arellano, for your story on immigrants flying the flags of the countries from which they came. There’s nothing wrong with people being happy and proud — in fact, that is part of the American dream.

Bill Corey, Whittier

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To the editor: I have always been irked at the sight of foreign flags at immigration demonstrations because it seems disrespectful. So, I read Arellano’s column with interest and curiosity.

I understand why some protesters wave the flags of their country of origin. However, everyone either came to the U.S. from a foreign country or descends from those who did so (except the Indigenous), and we or our ancestors came seeking a better life and future, freedom from persecution and religious freedom.

It is wonderful to be proud of your heritage, but recognize that the U.S. provided these opportunities that might not have been available in your country of origin. Be proud and wave the American flag — or how about waving both flags together?

Bette Tang, Chatsworth

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To the editor: I want to thank Arellano for his thoughtful analysis of why people wave foreign flags at anti-deportation rallies.

In 1994, as president of the California School Boards Assn., I was a lead spokesperson talking about the harsh effects Proposition 187 would have on undocumented school children. I vividly remember how images of protesters carrying Mexican flags created a backlash and made our efforts in support of reasonable solutions to undocumented immigration more difficult.

When I saw images of Mexican flags waving at the recent immigrant-rights rallies, my first thought was, “Please, someone tell them to put away the flags!” After reading Arellano’s reflections, I’m able to relax and smile a bit.

Quite frankly, I wish I could feel as proud of my own country right now as they are of their heritage.

Sherry Loofbourrow, Laguna Beach

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To the editor: Like Arellano, I tried to wrap my head around the counterintuitive premise that waving foreign flags at anti-deportation protests is “good trouble” (invoking the late civil rights icon John Lewis) and a “reasonable reaction to people who say immigrants should leave ‘their’ country.”

But nothing in Arellano’s article even remotely made his case. Simply stated, flying a foreign flag to support your perceived right to remain in America as an American defies common sense and is incredibly tone-deaf.

Jeff Berke, Calabasas