A question of etiquette

IVY JACOBS PHOTO - New flagpoles are installed at the Forest Park entry, and some community members question the etiquette.

New flagpoles are installed at the Forest Park entry, and some community members question the etiquette.

After several calls questioning the American Flag and the Brazilian Flag being at equal heights, The Brazil Times called Brazil Mayor Brian Wyndham to learn more about the project.

Wyndham said the new flagpoles are the brainchild of Andy Stone at A&B Farmhouse in Brazil. Wyndham said Stone raised money for the community beautification project, and the city will be matching funds to help complete the project’s landscaping.

The project consists of three flags, the US Flag, the Brazilian Flag of South America (which gave the Chafariz dos Contos Fountain: The Fountain of the Tales to Brazil in 1956), and the Indiana State Flag.

The community misunderstanding is not with the flags themselves; the misconception is over how they are placed and at what levels on the poles. Most comments have been, “Isn’t America’s Flag supposed to fly highest?”

Wyndham said the City of Brazil checked the official Flag Code before installing the poles.

According to the Flag Code:

“If the flags of other nations are displayed with the American Flag, they should be of equal size and at equal heights on separate staffs at a time of peace. The American Flag should be displayed to the (Flag’s own) right but not higher than other national flags.”

There is another important point in the code:

“The American Flag should be flown higher than lesser flags. If the flags are displayed on the same level, the American Flag should be flown to the (Flag’s own) right of all other flags. The right is a position of prominence.”

While many accept it might be an optical illusion, according to where you are viewing the display, officials say they followed the Code: So the Flag for Indiana is lower than the two country flags on display.

“There’s more work to do on the project,” said Wyndham, who believes the flower and flag pole installations are a beautiful addition to the park, and the city. “Andy Stone and the volunteers did a beautiful job.”

Wyndham also thanked the Boy Scouts for providing the flag ceremony on May 14, Brazil Elks Veterans Committee for the new American Flag, Vision Quest Landscaping, and the Wabash Valley United Way Better Neighborhood Grant.

Learn more about the United State Flag Code at https://www.united-states-flag.com/.