Friday afternoon after school I was going to meet my liaison, and noticed something strange. All the flags were at half-staff, which is weird because the flags should be at the top, above all. When I asked mom why all the flags are down she told me that the United States flag flies at half-staff or at half-mast when the nation or a state is in mourning. The president, mayor or state governor can order to fly at half-staff. It marks, death of a government official, military member or in honor of the victims of the mass shooting. And the president Joe Biden announced to fly flags at half-staff in honor of the victims of the mass shooting in Lewiston, acknowledging this somber moment for the both state and entire nation.
In addition, we half-staff the flag for different time periods on different days just like on memorial day we half-staff flags from sunrise till noon, on patriot day we half-staff flag from sunrise till sunset. Moreover it is also different for each personality after the death of president or former president it is 30 days, 10 days vice president, chief of justice, retired chief of justice or speaker of the house, 2 days for the congress member and until burial for the associate justice of the supreme court, secretary of a military department, former vice president or the governor of the state. Being very honest at the time I was completely shocked because I have never heard of half-staff before, we were always told that the nation's flag should always be at the top no matter what. It is really a thoughtful gesture, acknowledging the gravity of the situation and expressing collective mourning for the victims. Symbolic acts like this are really helpful to unite nations during challenging times.I think this should be everywhere in the world. Everyone faces hard times, and small gestures like this can help a lot. - Ushana Comments are closed.
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