Reclaiming the flag is difficult, thought, given how it's often used to symbolize performative patriotism, America right or wrong, that sort of thing.

That's not a new sentiment. I'm 61 years old, and the flag has been used like that since I can remember. And I remember a lot, having spent time in my childhood in conservative religious schools that fetishized the American flag.

I think most of us on the left are at least suspicious of overt patriotism. I lived outside of the United States for several years, I've traveled widely, and whenever I'm home, I love my country. Meaning — I feel very comfortable in the land where I grew up, eating the food I'm used to, surrounded by the people who make me most comfortable because I "get" them at a deep level. I live in a beautiful part of the country surrounded by glorious nature. What's not to love?

But that sort of love does not extend to the kind of patriotism expressed by people who wave American flags. I know that when those sorts of people talk about America being the greatest country in the world, they are deeply misinformed.

I know their insistence on American supremacy, to the point of jingoism, is thoughtless and dangerous.

As a gay man who lost unspeakable numbers of close friends to AIDS while my government sat around and didn't care, I have a visceral understanding of how great our country is NOT– a lot of the time. In the last few years, I've felt a target on my back regarding my queerness more than I've felt in a long time.

And make no mistake, that targeting is being done by people who wave American flags, who are full of thoughtless, supremacist patriotism.

You won't find me waving an American flag. I will not connect myself to the attitude that communicates today and has communicated for all my life.

Maybe one day that will change. I hope so.