Following a debate over the use of “thin blue line” flags in the city’s annual Fourth of July event, Merriam has adopted a new official flag display policy. The Merriam City Council on Monday unanimously approved the new flag rules for city property and city-run events, which came after the decision to exclude “thin blue line” flags and display only U.S. flags during the city’s Flags 4 Freedom event that starts later this month. The new policy approved Monday goes beyond that one event and outlines what flags the city can display on city-owned flag poles and at citywide events. It also offers a way for the governing body to request additional flag displays at the base of several flag poles at the city’s municipal plaza, 9001 W. 62nd St. Last month, the city council decided to display only U.S. flags during the city’s Flags 4 Freedom event, which occurs each year during the week of the Fourth of July. This is the first year that the city is sponsoring and managing the event, which was previously overseen by a group of volunteers, and there were concerns over displaying a handful of “thin blue line” flags as has been done in previous years.
Source: Johnson County Post
