Q&A of the Day –May a foreign flag fly without the American or Florida flags?
Each day I’ll feature a listener question that’s been submitted by one of these methods.
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Today’s entry: Hello Brian, As I travel the roadways in (South Florida), It is easy to spot local businesses flying the flags of foreign countries. Is there an ordinance requiring anyone that flies a flag from another country, also be required to fly the American flag as well?
Thank you for all you do! I'm an enthusiastic, daily listener!
Bottom Line: Thank you for listening and your support. It’s appreciated more than you know. As for your question. You may fly flags for foreign countries or representing certain interests (rainbow flags are common for example), without flying the American flag or Florida’s flag. It’s protected speech under our first amendment. The flag code of the United States applies only when the American flag is present. If the American flag is present these rules apply:
- American flag must be highest
- Other flags may not share the same flag poll
In Florida, the order of flags if the state flag were present would be the American flag, Florida’s flag and subsequent flags. There’s no appropriate order for foreign flags aside from displays at the United Nations. To the extent that a local government can regulate flags, it’s simply the size and locations of displays. The most prominent example of this was, ironically, Donald Trump’s battle with Palm Beach regarding of the size and height of the American flag on display at Mar-A-Lago that began in 2006 and eventually led to a settlement and change in ordinances for Palm Beach. For those who’ve poked fun at President Trump’s love for the flag, they conveniently forget, or don’t know, that President Trump fought Palm Beach to fly to largest,highest flag possible a decade before he became our president.