Drive around Utah neighborhoods, and you're likely to see flags of sports teams on display, but few representations of the state flag. That's a missed opportunity, says Utah Sen. Dan McCay, who co-sponsored a bill establishing the Utah State Flag Task Force.
For Those Who Ask: Why Now?
The name of the statewide initiative, More Than Just A Flag, signifies its greater purpose. After an extensive public engagement campaign throughout 2022, the proposed new design aims to represent Utahns' shared values now.
A 2021 survey reported Utahns value the history of our current flag, which features our state's seal, but a majority of respondents didn't feel like the banner represented them.
Few Utahns can draw our current flag. And as Sen. McCay suggests, few Utahns currently display our flag.
The idea of creating a new flag isn't an exercise in wokeness or about canceling history. Instead, the proposed new design draws upon symbols in Utah's state seal and residents' submissions and suggestions. The aim was to create a design that's easier to reproduce and recognize at a distance, a design that Utahns can rally around.
And to create a new state flag design that more Utahns will be proud to display.
