My concern is the provincial flag of New Brunswick. It is a lovely flag, to be sure. It reflects New Brunswick’s proud maritime history; our connection to the Houses of Hanover and Windsor; and, of course, front and center we have a proud medieval-era sailing vessel representing the vital importance of the shipbuilding industry to our early economy. While it might be argued that most New Brunswickers no longer turn to the sea to make aliving, or that our connections to the Royal Houses of Europe and England are tenuous at best, orthat the last ship yard in New Brunswick closed at the end of the last century, I must state at the outset that I do not take issue with the presence of any of these on our flag. Each represents an important part of our provincial history; and, while that history, as presented, is by no means exhaustive, it is none the less germane. We are even fortunate enough to have an additional flag in le drapeau Acadien to help fill in some of the bits missed by our standard provincial standard. What I do take issue with, however, is the physical orientation of the ship – that proud New Brunswick Ship of State – as it appears on our flag.
Our ship of state is depicted as heading, at all times, in an unreasonable, illogical, unsustainable direction. It’s not a pretty thing to see in this economic climate. New Brunswick has had a hard row to hoe for years now; our industries have been in steady decline; our provincial debt has been mounting; our total population is on par with that of Mississauga, Ontario, and continues to shrink. It is not, I think, unreasonable to suggest that we are in something of a pickle. Many New Brunswickers will tell you, if asked, that they hope that things will “turn around” for our province; to that end, I am suggesting that we literally turn our ship around. Please understand that I am not suggesting that simply altering our provincial flag will be the catalyst for major or immediate improvements in our situation. I am, however, willing to argue that symbols matter, that the symbols on our provincial flag matter, and that symbolic change can also matter.
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