tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7285686065722385507.post6357410754872648310..comments2013-01-01T09:18:49.791-05:00Comments on IC What You Mean: The Flag: Sacred Symbol of NationalismRenéehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16876216709137307733noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7285686065722385507.post-58202090452320535262010-09-19T19:41:21.311-04:002010-09-19T19:41:21.311-04:00People do attach significant nationalistic meaning...People do attach significant nationalistic meanings to flags, and tend to have an emotional reaction when their flags are displayed.<br /><br />This reminded me of how the current Vietnamese flag is viewed by many in the Vietnamese-American community. For those who came to the U.S. as refugees after the fall of Saigon, the flag of their nation will always be the South Vietnamese, pre-communist flag (yellow with three red horizontal stripes). The current flag (red with a yellow star) brings forth strong negative emotions and memories of violence, relatives lost, turbulent times, and defeat. If you visit Eden Center (the Vietnamese shopping center in Falls Church), you'll notice that the South Vietnamese flag is displayed.<br /><br />Recently, this issue came to light during the distribution of the 2010 U.S. census. On the Vietnamese language version of the paperwork, the current, official Vietnamese flag was displayed. This upset many in the Vietnamese community, such that they got together a petition to get it removed.<br /><br />As the U.S. recognizes the official flag of the current Vietnamese government, it uses this flag on all official documents. So it really wouldn't have been feasible to replace it with the former flag. Instead, the flag was removed all together on the Vietnamese versions. (See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_South_Vietnam for a few other controversial incidents)<br /><br />This example illustrates how the "nation" and identity of diasporic communities sometimes differs significantly from that of the original country.Renéehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16876216709137307733noreply@blogger.com