Gov cautions cabinet to make sure US & AS flags are “presentable flags”

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Gov. Lemanu Peleti Mauga has directed cabinet members to properly dispose of “unserviceable” United States and American Samoa flags and replace them with “presentable flags” to be flown.

The governor’s directive, outlined in a Feb. 2 memorandum, comes amid long standing concerns and complaints from many residents — including veterans — of seeing worn out or tattered United State flags flown on sites island-wide including ASG locations. In some instances, the US flag is flown up-side down for a certain period of time before the error is identified and corrected.

“The flags of the United States and American Samoa are symbols of national pride and patriotism. They represent the tenants and ideals that our Nation and Territory was founded upon,” the governor said in the memo.

“As we proudly raise and honor the United States and American Samoa Flag, we do so with remembrance of our sons and daughters who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our country,” he observed.

Therefore, he said, it’s “of utmost importance that “these symbols remain immaculate whenever on public display.”

Lemanu informed cabinet members that “discolored, tattered flags are considered unserviceable”; and therefore they should not be flown under any circumstances. Additionally, all ASG departments, agencies, offices and authorities are to ensure that their damaged and torn United States and American Samoa flags “are disposed of properly and that they are replaced with presentable flags.”

The memo doesn’t go into details on the disposal protocol for the United States and American Samoa flags that are considered are unserviceable.

However, a 2020 article featured on the U.S. Defense Department website provides how to properly disposed of worn-out U.S. flags at both the federal and state levels. [see link - https://www.defense.gov/News/Feature-Stories/Story/Article/2206946/how-…]

The Veterans of Foreign Wars group also posted information on its website of the etiquette of disposing the U.S flag [https://www.vfw.org/community/flag-etiquette].

Furthermore, rules for handling and displaying the U.S. Flag are defined by a federal law known as the U.S. Flag Code. Details are found online at: [https://www.usa.gov/flag].