Macy Gray blasted for attack on ‘divisive’ American flag after saying it’s been ‘hijacked & doesn’t represent freedom’
MUSICIAN Macy Gray has come under fire for an attack on the American flag, which she believes is "tattered, dated and divisive".
The singer addressed her irritation with Old Glory in an Op-ed honoring Juneteenth.
The Grammy winning R&B artist accused the American flag of getting “hijacked as code for a specific belief,” the piece published in reads.
“God bless those believers, they can have it.”
She then compared the “Stars and Stripes” to the “Stars and Bars” flag that represents the Confederacy.
“Like the Confederate, it is tattered, dated, divisive, and incorrect.”
She added: “It no longer represents democracy and freedom. It no longer represents ALL of us.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.”
The effort was met with quick derision by numerous politicians.
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem told Gray: "No thanks."
She went on: "Old Glory still eaves as a symbol of liberty and justice for all."
Republican Congresswoman Lauren Boebert of Colorado went so far as to say if you're against the flag then go find one you prefer and move there.
"There are 195 countries in the world," Boebert tweeted. "194 of them don’t have the American flag.
"If or anyone else hates the American flag so badly, they should pick a flag they like & go live in the country that flies it!"
Rep. Andy Biggs of Arisona echoed that sentiment.
"If you don’t like the American flag, feel free to leave," his tweet reads.
The musician preemptively answered what many may soon be asking: Why?
Gray argued that the flag’s composition is flawed.
She claims the 50 stars are missing two - specifically citing the statehood pursuits of both Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico.
And the white “stripes” on the flag she cites Smithsonian evidence that they symbolize “purity and innocence.”
“America is great. It is beautiful,” she writes. “Pure, it ain’t. It is broken and in pieces.”
She then asked: “What if the stripes were OFF-white?
“What if the stars were the colors of ALL of us — your skin tone and mine — like the melanin scale?”
As for the blue square and the red stripes, Gray appeared to keep them in some form.
The blue square she writes represents “vigilance and perseverance” and the red stripes “stand for valor.”
“America is all of those things,” the Op-Ed reads.
“So, what if those elements on the flag remained? What if the flag looked like this?”
And that’s when a fully rendered version of an American flag is included bearing 52 stars in various shades to replace the original white.
The stripes were darkened to almost gray hue.
And the red striped background was more a translucent shade overlaid on a map.
To close out her call for a flag fix, she suggested that what she’s pushing for isn’t unprecedented.
She pointed to how in 1959, the flag was altered by a teenager named Bob Heft.
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He rearranged the stars from 48 to 50 - in anticipation of Hawaii and Alaska joining the union.
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“He crafted a NEW flag with 50 stars for the then-future, because things had changed,” Macy stated.
"Sixty-two years later, in 2021, we have changed and it’s time for a reset, a transformation. One that represents all states and all of us."