Flag raising, decades-old bylaw under consideration at Saskatoon’s city hall

Seeing a range of flags flying outside of Saskatoon’s City Hall might soon be a thing of the past.

During the Governance and Priorities Committee Meeting on Sept. 10, several recommendations made by the administration to the Protocol Policy passed unanimously. It means they’ll move forward for later discussions by city council.

One of those recommendations dealt with the raising of flags.

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Speaking to the committee, city solicitor Cindy Yelland said that the administration recommends the City of Saskatoon discontinue the practice of raising the flags of other countries and issuing any accompanying proclamations.

It’s a decision the City of Regina made earlier this year.

According to Yelland, Saskatoon doesn’t have an obligation to fly those flags and doing so opens the city up to criticism, like if those flags are from countries with human rights violations.

Yelland also said that the geopolitical environment around the world is becoming “increasingly complex.” So, requiring administration to determine which flags can and should fly requires them to make judgments outside their areas of expertise.

Aside from administration, the recommendation has strong support from at least one other person.

Vietnamese refugee Hai Vu moved to Saskatoon in 1980 and says he fled his former country because of communism.

Although he’s been in Canada for 45 years, Vu said anyone who’s lived in a communist country will know how it feels to see its flag.

“It reminds me and a lot of people [of] the regime that denied freedoms, suppressed humanity, forced millions to abandon their homes,” he told the committee.

He wasn’t just speaking tangentially, though, as Vu recalled seeing Vietnam’s flag raised outside of city hall.

“(It) brought back the horrific memories of suffering and re-education of prison camp,” he said.

Vu even went on to say that by raising the Vietnamese flag, it was comparable to “spitting on a grave” for the Canadian soldiers who fought in the Vietnam War.

If city council ends up passing administration’s recommendation, only four flags will be permanently displayed outside city hall: the Canadian flag, the Saskatchewan flag, the Treaty 6 flag and the Métis Nation of Saskatchewan flag.

There will be an additional three poles for flags allowed through the Protocol Policy.

Yelland said exceptions will be made for the upcoming Republic Day of Trinidad and Tobago on Sep. 19 to 26 and the Republic Day for Turkey on Oct. 29 to Nov. 2, as administration already approved the raising of both countries’ flags.

Reviewing bylaw following Feucht concert

During the same meeting, a motion was passed to review a decades-old bylaw.

Administration is set to look over the Recreation Facilities and Parks Usage bylaw. While Yelland said work was already underway, the motion was brought forward following concerns over Sean Feucht’s concert in Diefenbaker Park last month.

Mayor Cynthia Block, who put forward the notice of motion, said it’s not about banning or restricting events. Instead, it’s intended to review the city’s permitting process, taking a critical look at how these public spaces are used.

Jennifer Lenny spoke to the committee on behalf of Indigenous Teachers for Two-Spirit Youth, saying how Feucht isn’t just a musician but someone known to spread anti-LGBTQ2S+ rhetoric. By permitting the event, Lenny said it threatened the mental health of queer youth.

According to Lenny, the city needs to ensure that performers who spread hate, exclusion or violence aren’t allowed to use Saskatoon venues for their events.

Since the motion passed unanimously during the meeting, administration will now prepare a report for the Governance and Priorities Committee, outlining options for changes to the bylaw that still protect freedom of expression.