Actually, the term that The New York Times uses this time is “fodder,” as in the ubiquity of Mexican flags at the riots provides “fodder” for Republicans to use when criticizing the riots in Los Angeles–riots coming to a Blue city near you.
NYT: protesters are not flying the Mexican flag in the obvious sense but as a sophisticated symbol of protest the MAGA crowd is too stupid to see.https://t.co/MCo0ym74fx
— wretchardthecat (@wretchardthecat) June 11, 2025
It’s a common tactic in the Pravda Media. The story is never the story; the story is that Republicans are “seizing,” “pouncing,” or using the awful behavior of the left as “fodder” for illegitimate criticisms of leftists behaving badly.
If only Republicans acceded to the demands of leftists, all would be well, you know. Obey your communist overlords.
As images of protests in Southern California have flooded television and social media in recent days, a key question has emerged: Why are so many protesters carrying Mexican flags at an American political protest?
The sea of red, white and green Mexican flags at anti-deportation protests this week in Los Angeles has been seized upon by conservatives who argue that the demonstrations are inherently un-American, causing some protesters to consider leaving them at home.
Photos of masked provocateurs waving Mexican flags atop burning Waymo taxis spread instantly across conservative social media this weekend. Republicans pointed to them as a prime example of why President Trump called in the National Guard and how immigration had gone too far in California.
“Look at all the foreign flags,” Stephen Miller, the deputy White House chief of staff and the architect of Mr. Trump’s domestic agenda, said Sunday on X. “Los Angeles is occupied territory.”
I don’t think the protests are inherently “un-American.” They are inherently anti-American. The protesters even say so. What do you think “decolonization” means?
The LA rioters are overwhelmingly flying Mexican flags.
I expect that a majority of them are citizens or residents, but they do not regard themselves as Americans.
They are basically Mexican colonists.
They are reverse colonizing the USA.
Why is this OK with us? pic.twitter.com/gOPRLOxjLI
— GeroDoc (@doc_gero) June 10, 2025
The Times is trying to spin the waving of Mexican flags as a celebration of a culture, not a country. While this is true when you enter a Mexican restaurant or wave a flag on Cinco de Mayo–I never think twice about such displays of cultural affinity, whether the flags are Mexican, Italian, Irish, or German on certain holidays or in explicitly cultural locations like restaurants advertising their affinity with the old country–waving the flags at a riot mean something else entirely.
The riots, after all, are all about destroying America–you can see it in the fires, vandalism, “Amerikkka” graffiti, and anti-police rhetoric. There are few symbols more obvious than destroying things and explicitly rejecting the legitimacy of the government.
If they’re so proud of flying Mexican flags, then why the hell are they fighting so hard to not be sent back? pic.twitter.com/w2ajMPMZWW
— DC_Draino (@DC_Draino) June 8, 2025
As I wrote in my earlier piece today, some defenders of the rioters explicitly say that the Southwest United States IS Mexico, which is a pretty rich argument given that the whole point of the riots is that the flag-wavers don’t want to be in Mexico. If there is such a cultural affinity for the country, what is so offensive about asking people to return to the culture they so admire? We all know the answer to that–Mexico is much poorer, more lawless and corrupt, and provides few economic opportunities.
Not to mention that these people get to be freeloaders, collecting welfare, healthcare, and public housing. They don’t want Mexico–they want to rule America.
And the explicit strategy to make people doubt the very real images of shit on fire and keffiyeh wearing rioters waving Mexican flags.
It’s anti-journalism. https://t.co/9McfMOXfQr
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) June 10, 2025
A number of smarter leftists, understanding that the optics of these flags–an open admission of hatred for American laws and a demand that the laws don’t apply to them–are distributing American flags in a vain hope to reframe the riots as patriotic expressions of support for the Constitution or something like that. That will be a no-go, because the rioters are proud to hate Americans.
“Strategically, should the Mexican flag be waved the way it has been at these protests? No,” he said. “But can you prevent that from happening? No.”
Maria Flores, 52, a Mexican-born member of the United Food and Commercial Workers who has been a U.S. citizen for more than two decades, waved the Mexican colors at a rally this week.
Ms. Flores said she also owns an American flag but worried about carrying it at an anti-Trump protest because the stars-and-stripes iconography had become so associated with the MAGA movement.
“Right now, it could look bad to raise the American flag because of the Trump administration,” she said. “If I put the U.S. flag outside my home, my neighbors would think I’m with Trump.”
Why IS the American flag associated with Trump? Because Trump is the avatar of all Americans who love America and don’t want to see it destroyed. The left has embraced “anticolonialism”–which is just another way of saying “Americans out of America” and “this land is OURS,” so it’s only natural that the association is strong. When the protesters burn the American flag and raise the flag of another country or ideology–the transgender pride flag is another, or the Palestinian flag–it really is a statement that America sucks.
She described an otherwise law-abiding undocumented family member who had been trying for years to become legal. The effort had failed so far.
“I carry the flag for my family and everyone who doesn’t have papers,” she said in Spanish. “I speak for them. I am their voice.”
We didn’t invent that. Plenty of liberals are proud of being American, but no leftist is. Rejection of liberal democracy really is the point. That is not my invention–ask the rioters, or look at the riots. That is not law-abiding or “peaceful.”
These are our 2026 campaign ads. 🔥
> This video plays
> Cut to a Democrat in your area calling this a peaceful protest
> Cut to guys in masks with Mexican flags burning cars & throwing rocks at cops
> End with Dems demanding citizenship for illegalspic.twitter.com/xrok0GhN0T
— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) June 9, 2025
Even our Mexican neighbors–a country with much harsher immigration laws than the United States, and which rushes the illegal immigrants out of their country into ours–are agitating for the rioters.
We’re quadrupling the House BBB’s proposed remittance tax — from 3.5 to 15%.https://t.co/NuSyjIVctK
— Eric Schmitt (@Eric_Schmitt) June 9, 2025
Not that the rule of law means anything to Mexico–that, after all, is why Mexicans are so desperate to leave. It’s just that they want to transfer the wealth of our country into their hands.
We really SHOULD consider giving California back to Mexico. They deserve each other.
President of the Mexican Senate Wants Southwest United States Back https://t.co/s4MyaMnDRj
— David Strom (@DavidStrom) June 11, 2025
I believe that Latinos have contributed a lot to our culture, but also that this is OUR culture, our country, and our laws. We keep hearing about how illegal aliens contribute so much to our country–and that we should abandon our culture, our laws, and hand out billions of dollars in food, housing, and medical care to them because they can’t take care of themselves.
“They’re just coming here for a better life”
Uh yeah, a better life we pay for as they spit on our country and refuse to attempt assimilation.
All illegals have to go back. Yes, all of them.
They love their Mexican flag so send them home.
— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) June 9, 2025
The arguments not only don’t make sense, they aren’t meant to. Riots are all about using force to impose the will of the mob, and should be understood as such. It isn’t complicated.
We could have had a rational discussion about what immigration policy best serves the interest of the United States some time ago, but we can’t now. The open borders policies pursued by Biden have made that impossible. The argument now is much simpler: America has a border and is a sovereign country ruled by its citizens, or it isn’t.
I vote for the former. The supporters of the rioters, and by extension, the illegal immigrants, vote for the latter.
That’s why the symbolism of the Mexican flag matters–it really IS a statement that America should be theirs.
Editor’s Note: President Trump will not allow lawlessness to reign in America. We will not have a repeat of 2020’s “Summer of Love.”
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