SACO, Maine — Veterans in Saco held a protest on Independence Day, claiming the city is violating the U.S. Flag Code.
Veterans say that the flags are lower than pennants above them, a violation of the code, which says no pennants can hang above an American flag.
Saco Mayor Roland Michaud says the city is doing nothing wrong, because he says the banners above the flag do not meet the definition of a pennant.
Some veterans disagree.
“If you read the flag code, four paragraphs down, it states that no banner or pennant should fly above the American flag, if it is on a single pole,” says Jake Mulligan, American Legion District 1 commander.
“I’d like them to take the banners down, or move the flags above it,” says Joe Armstrong, president of Chapter 1044 Biddeford of Vietnam Veterans America.
The mayor says he will keep the flags the way they are, unless the city is told it is wrong.