You can go out and buy the Maple Leaf flag, the official flag of Canada, and then insult it in any number of ways—burn it, flush it, fly it upside down, whatever—and suffer only the loss of personal reputation. But, should you get ahold of the official flag of the Halifax Regional Municipality and proceed to dis it, you could be fined $500 or thrown in jail for 30 days, for each said offence.
Welcome to the murky legal world of heraldry. Most people didn’t even know the city had a flag until Tuesday, when city council approved “housekeeping” amendments that straightened out some conflicting bureaucratic code related to it, agrees city clerk Cathie Mellet. The flag corresponds to heraldry that was adopted when HRM was formed—it contains at its centre an odd bird; four arrows emanate from the bird, suggesting perhaps that it be drawn and quartered or maybe exploded, as two ships look on. Mellet has no idea what the symbolism means.
The intent of the amendments is to make it easier for the public to purchase the flag, but the language about disrespecting it was inserted at the insistence of the city’s legal staff. Who defines what “disrespect” means? “Well, that’s just it,” says Mellet. “It’s unlikely we’d actually prosecute someone.”
The Flag Shop in Dartmouth makes the flag for the city, says manager Carol Aylard, but is waiting for further instructions from the city before selling directly to the public. The store has yet to determine what the flag will cost, but the flags for the former cities of Halifax and Dartmouth cost $79.95.
This article appears in Sep 9-15, 2010.
It’s a shitty and meaningless flag. Oh, and thanks for spending time debating this instead of focusing on actual issues of importance. Guess it’s hard to put in a real day’s work when half of our council are alcoholics.
For the record, councillors did not debate this Tuesday. They simply approved it on a voice vote, no discussion.
I am glad there are not more pressing issues, like backyard chickens or cats. Or maybe the city is working so well that we have the luxury of spending our time on this issue. I am going to flush a flag and foul up the sewage treatment system — wait, it only takes rain to do that. Nevermind.
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My mistake Tim, thanks for the clarification. Still, it’s kind of sad they would even consider this an official flag. I have a sneaking suspicion they had a contest for grade 5 students to design flags on a friday afternoon. Those arrows make me want to puuukkke.
The link you provide, Tim, to the Coat of Arms website has both brief and detailed descriptions of the crest, explaining the symbolism.
This reminds me of the New York Subway rules as spitting on the sidewalk is a $50.00 fine, puking on the side walk is FREE !
funny ole world isn’t it ~:)
The 4 arrows are quite appropriate.
HRM, flying off in all directions but two ships headed to the left (I presume that is where the rocks are).
No red, Liberals must be have been asleep when this design went through.
What’s to disrespect? It looks like a crap piece of work they probably gave to school kids to design in a contest, which just goes to show how parochial is the collective mindset of our City Council. I guess they’re unaware of the long-established communication design program just down the hill from City Hall, or of the plethora of practising graphic designers who could have done the job in a professional way.
The arrows signify all young people with an education or brain getting the hell out of this dead end city first chance they get. The boats suggest to me people returning here to retire after making a living elsewhere.
perhaps if the swarming punks burned this flag the hrp could make arrests
For anyone interested, the kingfisher at the center of the flag represents the sun (Alcyone) of the Seven Sisters (Pleiades star system). Since ancient times, mariners have been using Alcyone’s position in the night sky as a signal as to the beginning and end of the sailing season. Alcyone is directly overhead at winter solstice, the traditional end of the sailing season in the Northern Hemisphere.
Addendum to my previous comment about the Halifax City Flag and Alcyone.
Do a Web search for Alcyone and freemasonry. The St. Andrew’s Cross also featured in the City Flag (as well as the provincial flag), is another important symbol in Scottish Rite freemasonry.
I guess what I want to know is who has the power to change this blighted thing. The flag is universally and justly reviled. How do we get it changed?