Last week, the City of Brotherly Love expressed its brotherly love for communism when the flag of the People’s Republic of China was flown over City Hall. Allied nations and sister cities often do this type of thing, but China is a hostile, anti-American regime, unique in its tyranny. The flag of an oppressive dictatorship should not be flying over the city where the Constitution of the United States of America was born.

The city of Philadelphia’s Office of Immigrant Affairs is behind the decision to raise the PRC’s colors over City Hall. Strictly a cultural event, the flag-raising ceremony was meant to celebrate the cultural heritage of Philadelphia’s Chinese residents. City officials cited flag-raising ceremonies for some 20 other nations in defense of raising the PRC’s flag.

However, symbolism is important in global affairs, with flags being a prime example of political symbolism. It mattered when the U.S. flag flew on the moon. Likewise, it matters when the PRC can fly its flag over the birthplace of one of its biggest adversaries. Moreover, if the flag raising is strictly cultural, other flags could have been raised alongside the PRC flag. Taiwan and Hong Kong are both culturally Chinese, yet their flags were not found at this event.

Raising the PRC flag over Philly should be criticized, because of the actions of the Chinese Communist Party, not the Chinese people. Historically, the CCP has been one of the most oppressive regimes in the world. In this century alone, 40–60 million people starved to death because of the actions of the CCP. Additionally, the CCP ordered the brutal slaughter of thousands of pro-democracy protesters at Tiananmen Square. (These examples are just the beginning of the CCP’s democide.)

Proponents of the flag-raising ceremony may respond that the U.S. has a plethora of its own problems. While the U.S. has more than a few marks on its record, it is moving in the direction of correcting historical wrongs. The CCP, however, is built on these wrongs, and it continues suppressing its own people. Hong Kongers have seen their rights evaporate under the rule of the CCP. In addition, millions of Uyghurs languish in concentration camps as we speak, for the grave crime of being different from the majority Han people. That doesn’t even count the suffering of Tibetans, Mongolians, Falun Gong, and Christians, all of whom are persecuted intensely.

It isn’t just for moral reasons that state and local governments should shun partnerships with CCP organizations, as China is also a national security threat to the U.S. For one thing, China has been threatening Taiwan with a violent takeover. This matters to the U.S. because our military is desperately reliant on Taiwan for the advanced chips needed to power its military. If China takes over Taiwan, the U.S. military’s access to advanced chips is in danger. This is particularly relevant since Taiwan has been an unofficial ally of the United States for decades, and the U.S. may come to Taiwan’s defense.

Philadelphia is the birthplace of the American experiment. Not only was the Constitution created in Philly, but the United States declared its independence there. Allowing the flag of one of the world’s biggest opponents of freedom to fly over the birthplace of American democracy is antithetical to what Philly represents.

It’s too late to stop the flag raising at City Hall, but we can learn from this experience. If other cities consider raising the PRC flag, the American people need to make their voices heard and demand the cancellation of such an event. Likewise, for the city of Philadelphia, voters should hold accountable the officials who put on the event. The birthplace of America should not be raising the flag of one of its biggest geopolitical enemies.

Philadelphia is important not just to its people but to the United States as a whole because it is where our country was born. To protect its status as the birthplace of American liberty, Philly must reject attempts to raise anti-liberty symbols over City Hall. To preserve our country, we must remember the admonishment from Dr. Benjamin Franklin, “A Republic. If you can keep it.”

Matt Cookson is an alumnus of the Young Voices Contributor Program and was a Middle East History and Policy Fellow with Young Voices. He also works in the supply chain for a U.S. Defense Contractor. His commentary has appeared in the Daily Wire, Mises Institute, Real Clear Politics, the National Interest, Providence Magazine, China Source, and the Idaho Freedom Foundation. You can follow him on X @MattCookson95 and Substack @thewaythecookiecrumbles.

Image: Free image, Pixabay license.