Macy Gray believes it’s time to update the American flag.
In honor of Juneteenth becoming a federal holiday, the 53-year-old singer-songwriter penned an essay for Marketwatch on June 17 detailing her desire for a more inclusive banner. Macy described the riots at the Capitol in January as a reason why the flag has become “tattered, dated, divisive, and incorrect.” For her, it became a replacement for the “tired” Confederate flag, and believes it is time for something new that’s representative of the country’s diversity:
“It no longer represents democracy and freedom. It no longer represents ALL of us. It’s not fair to be forced to honor it. It’s time for a new flag.”
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The record producer also created a proposal for a new flag, which would expand the 50 stars to 52:
“D.C. and Puerto Rico have been lobbying for statehood for decades. Both have been denied since statehood would allow each territory’s elected officials seats in the house. Assuming D.C. reps would be African-American and Puerto Rican reps would be Hispanic, the ultimate assumption is that these elected officials would be Democratic. That alone is racist.”
Furthermore, she stated how the stripes should no longer stand for purity and innocence:
“America is great. It is beautiful. Pure, it ain’t. It is broken and in pieces. What if the stripes were OFF-white? What if there were 52 stars to include D.C. and Puerto Rico? What if the stars were the colors of ALL of us — your skin tone and mine — like the melanin scale? The blue square represents vigilance and perseverance; and the red stripes stand for valor. America is all of those things.”
In case you didn’t know, the US flag has been altered multiple times since 1777. It’s currently in its 27th incarnation after President Eisenhower adopted the 50-star design to include Hawaii and Alaska in 1960. The more you know!
Given so much has changed over the past 61 years, Macy said that “it’s time for a reset, a transformation. One that represents all states and all of us.”
Following publication, the post started gaining traction and trending on social media on Saturday. There were a wide range of reactions online — unfortunately, a lot of them were incredibly harsh and disgustingly racist. Trust us, when we say a lot of things said were beyond horrible. But despite the hate, Gray received a good amount of support for her rationale for a more inclusive flag as well. If you want, you can take a look at the reactions HERE.
[Image via Marta Szczesniak/WENN]
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