Changing Spain's flag to ease polarization
Redesigning the flag to reduce polarization revives the clash between the 1931 tricolor and the 1978 constitutional flag. A new symbol or a trap?
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Changing the flag to unite: the tug-of-war between 1931 and 1978
The proposal sounds reasonable, which is how bad ideas usually sound: change Spain's flag to please everyone. The idea is seductive in the abstract, but once you get specific, the first problem appears: what do you put on the cloth? Some rescue the cross of Santiago on a white background, with its medieval pedigree. Others look to 1931, when the republican tricolor "worked," according to its defenders. The precedent does not invite optimism: it lasted the blink of an eye, and even then it did not represent everyone.
The ghost of 1931 and the hangover from 1978
For those who defend the 1978 constitutional order, the current flag has centuries of history behind it and needs no refounding. "We should go back to the 1978 flag," the argument goes, because the previous one only brought smoke and false nostalgia. Against that, others warn of the slippery slope: once you change a symbol by consensus, the next step is putting a hammer and sickle on it. The question is not just aesthetic, it is about the regime itself.
Deep down, polarization is not fixed with a piece of cloth. It is fixed by stopping the insults toward those who see it differently. Meanwhile, the debate remains stuck where it always is: who buries 1931 and who resurrects 1978.
The proposal sounds reasonable, which is how bad ideas usually sound: change Spain's flag to please everyone. The idea is seductive in the abstract, but once you get specific, the first problem appears: what do you put on the cloth? Some rescue the cross of Santiago on a white background, with its medieval pedigree. Others look to 1931, when the republican tricolor "worked," according to its defenders. The precedent does not invite optimism: it lasted the blink of an eye, and even then it did not represent everyone.
The ghost of 1931 and the hangover from 1978
For those who defend the 1978 constitutional order, the current flag has centuries of history behind it and needs no refounding. "We should go back to the 1978 flag," the argument goes, because the previous one only brought smoke and false nostalgia. Against that, others warn of the slippery slope: once you change a symbol by consensus, the next step is putting a hammer and sickle on it. The question is not just aesthetic, it is about the regime itself.
Deep down, polarization is not fixed with a piece of cloth. It is fixed by stopping the insults toward those who see it differently. Meanwhile, the debate remains stuck where it always is: who buries 1931 and who resurrects 1978.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (17 replies).
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