This article was republished 8 March 2026 for International Women’s Day to highlight the incredible women of Bylines Network
Recent weeks have seen countless media platforms talking of reclaiming both the Union Jack and the St. George’s flags from the far right, often purporting the ways in which they could instead be used toward a progressive patriotism. This accompanies commendable grassroots efforts to challenge anti-migrant demonstrations outside numerous hotels housing asylum seekers up and down the country.
Both on the streets and online there have also been cries of “refugees are welcome”. But by looking beyond current discussions of flags and the narratives chanted, we see that who is welcome has never been straightforward.
Imperial residues: what’s in a flag?
According to Arundhati Roy, “Flags are bits of coloured cloth that governments use first to shrink-wrap people’s minds and then as ceremonial shrouds to bury the dead.”
The last few weeks have included much talk of both the Union Jack and the St. George’s flag being ‘hijacked’ by the far right. Whilst flags can take on different meanings, at different times and in different places, to different people, we should remind ourselves that the history of both of these flags is inseparable from legacies of (symbolic) violence, conquest and imperial domination.
Demonstrating the ways in which ideas of nation and identity are not ‘natural’, but instead constructed through mechanisms such as symbols and narratives, Stuart Hall talked of flags as “signifiers of power’’ . Their banal yet pervasive presence acts as a symbolic reminder that we ‘belong’ to a nation. This can be used by those in power to normalise particular conceptions of national identity.
The left (mis)uses the flag too
Questions around the use of the flag should not just be limited to the far right. Far from ideas of social justice and international class solidarity, the current Labour government has rapidly turned its gaze inward. Draping itself – both literally and rhetorically – in the nationalistic language of the Union Jack, Starmer’s Labour walks a familiar line of purporting British exceptionalism whilst upholding and strengthening systems of exclusion.
This was seen initially through criticism from a number of MPs and councillors that election material overtly adopted the Union Jack, with claims that this might “alienate ethnic minority voters”. However, it has since amplified to include Starmer’s ‘one-in-one-out’ pilot scheme with France and his repeated claims to restore control of our borders, continuing Britain’s legacy of selective compassion.
When it comes to questions around flags and the resurging and mainstreaming of the right, we must seriously consider what there was to hijack in the first place and ask if such imagery can genuinely be used for progressive ends.
Is Britain really welcoming?
There is a liberal tendency to remind ourselves that ‘we’ have a history of kindness and compassion towards others. We are offered continuous reminders, such as the Kindertransport, that Britain is hospitable and fair, doing ‘its bit’ to help refugees and those in need. Such stories invoke ideas of collective unity and generosity, presenting an uncomplicated history with such stories regularly regurgitated in times of contemporary crisis and political instability.
However, such acts of kindness have always been conditional and only extended to some. For instance, whilst the bespoke visa scheme set up for Ukrainian refugees was lauded by many, asylum seekers from the Global South are routinely subject to deportation, detention and criminalisation. Interesting here is Paul Gilroy’s idea of postcolonial melancholia. He argues that” while Britain attempts to deny the contemporary effects of its imperialist past, it has effectively reaffirmed the colonial order, with its racial divisions, through the post-9/11 ‘politics of security’.”
The divisive nature of borders
When we are presented with the well-intentioned calls of ‘refugees welcome here’, we must be clear that refugees aren’t made welcome. Of course, on an individual level this may well be the case, but despite the infrequent anomalies, such as the recent welcoming of Ukrainian refugees, successive governments continue to both enact and maintain punitive, and racist, border policies.
Such declarations, alongside the many calls to ‘reclaim’ both the Union Jack and the St. George’s flag from the far right, are often well-intentioned – citing ideas of inclusivity, pride and shared values. But they risk reaffirming the very idea of borders and nation-states as neutral and necessary frameworks for belonging. But they aren’t neutral and instead are inherently violent, demarcating insiders from outsiders and categorising those who are entitled to safety, rights and recognition against those who aren’t.
Of course, use the flag if you want – hang it, add positive messages, rally behind it during sporting events but don’t be naïve about the longer histories and structural functions of the flags, consistently operating as state-sanctioned symbols legitimising colonial conquest and violence both within and beyond Britain’s borders.
Real unity beyond the flag
To be truly welcoming we must move beyond discussions about the symbolism of the flag and boundaries of the nation and instead challenge the very systems which decide who gets to belong in the first place. To this end you can take the following actions:
- report anti-Muslim hate or Islamophobia to TellMAMA
- seek out and support your local anti-raids networks or other local groups
- learn about both border practices and the UK immigration and asylum system in order to effectively challenge mis/disinformation and harmful narratives.
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