Philadelphia is gearing up to raise the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) flag outside City Hall in honor of the regime's founding, a move that has stirred controversy. The decision immediately faced backlash, with opponents sending letters to Mayor Cherelle Parker urging her to cancel the display.
The Office of Immigrant Affairs is set to hold the flag-raising ceremony on September 30, Tuesday, organized in collaboration with the Pennsylvania United Chinese Coalition. The organization behind the event says that it wants to boost the image of the Chinese Communist Party in the U.S. through what it calls a cultural exchange. But the plan has already sparked widespread public outcry in Washington.
Public Outcry
John Moolenaar, who chairs the House Select Committee on the CCP, issued an open letter to Mayor Cherelle Parker this week, pressing her to rethink the flag-raising ceremony. "Raising the national flag of another country on U.S. soil through an official act is a powerful symbol," the letter read.
"A flag raising is used to show respect for a nation that can inspire unity and pride between our two peoples; but it can also be inadvertently used to misrepresent support for another nation's actions and values.
"The Five-Star Red Flag, embodying the totalitarian government led by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), represents a regime that is persecuting spiritual people of all faiths, including the genocide of Uyghur Muslims.
"It is a government that actively subsidizes the precursor chemicals used to manufacture fentanyl, which has killed or harmed millions of Americans. It is a Communist Party-State that is diametrically opposed to American values and working to undermine our interests worldwide."
In its letter, the committee pointed out that China is often at odds with the U.S. and warned that Philadelphia's government was essentially being used as a "propaganda tool" for the CCP.
"To cancel the PRC flag-raising ceremony will not only demonstrate that the local government in the United States stands for U.S. values and national interests, but that it stands in support for the people of China who face the regime's ruthless oppression and transnational repression."
Old Ties
Philadelphia's ties to China date back decades, with Tianjin becoming its official "sister city" in 1979 — one of the earliest such partnerships between the two nations.
City officials, however, insist the flag-raising isn't about politics but rather about celebrating the city's vibrant Chinese community. This will actually be the third time the flag has gone up outside City Hall, following similar ceremonies in 2017 and 2019.
Not everyone agrees with the move. A Fox News opinion piece slammed the plan, calling it "a disgrace then and a disgrace now."
"All city residents should reject the leadership of Philadelphia's campaign to betray our founding principles to virtue signal tolerance and diversity — a demonstration of weakness that China is only too happy to exploit.
"Communist China has emerged under President Xi Jinping as the polar opposite of everything Philadelphia has traditionally represented.
"The CCP is increasingly recognized as the single greatest national security threat to the United States in the 21st century."
Former President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping have long had a rocky relationship, made even more tense after Trump slapped steep tariffs on Chinese imports.
Still, the two are expected to sit down together at a regional summit in South Korea at the end of October. According to reports, Trump also plans to travel to China in the "early part of next year," a decision that came after the two leaders spoke at length over the phone on Friday.
