Is it time for an ‘inclusive’ flag for Northern Ireland? Probably not…

It’s been a while since we last had a flag controversy but the wait is at last over with Commonwealth Games Northern Ireland talking about the inclusivity of the Ulster Banner. As Adam McKendry reports here for ‘The Belfast Telegraph’…

“High-ranking Northern Ireland Commonwealth Games officials are set for a tense and fiery Annual General Meeting next week after putting forward a controversial proposal to change the Ulster Banner flag at future Games…

Heatley and Martin will argue at Wednesday evening’s meeting that both the current Union flag and Ulster Banner are not representative of Northern Ireland athletes and, therefore, a new flag for Northern Ireland participants should be created to promote inclusivity…

The FICT report stated then that any new Civic flag “would be designed to be representative of the diversity of our society, including our new communities” and would be the responsibility of elected officials.“

The proposal for a civic flag is not new and has been raised before but always falls foul of existing feelings on the topic. Many Unionists would be loath to agree to such a flag, likely fearing that such a flag (even if intended for a civic context) would rapidly become the de facto official flag, and denuded of overt British references would be considered another loss.

On the other hand many Nationalists would be reluctant to do anything they feel could buttress an emergent ‘Northern Irish’ identity that stands apart from, rather than being subordinate to, their Irish identity. Proposals for a new civic flag tend to die in the hollow status quo between the two positions and the CWGNI are likely to be disappointed, even if they reach consensus to make such a call at their upcoming AGM. Does the status quo work though? Are there any other alternatives to consider?

However, the CWGNI still intend to leave the Ulster Banner behind when they go to Glasgow in 2026 and plans to use a white flag with the CWGNI logo if a new civic flag is not in place at that point.

Slugger Team

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