Flag debate on the radio

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For half an hour on his Spanish-language radio show on KSCA-FM (101.9), Los Angeles disc jockey Eddie ‘Piolin’ Sotelo held a call-in debate over whether it was appropriate to bring non-U.S. flags to immigration rallies. The calls, primarily regarding Mexican flags, ran the gamut of arguments.

‘We carry Mexico in our hearts,’ one said. ‘We are Mexican and we will die Mexican. But that doesn’t mean we need to offend this country by waving our flag in its borders.’

Some callers, from other Latin American countries, called to complain that Mexican flag-wavers were not only insulting the U.S., but also hurting solidarity over the issue of immigration reform. One, in defending his right to wave the flag, noted that some have been offended by the gesture as U.S. troops waved flags in Iraq.

--Adrian Uribarri