It seems innocuous enough to tout red, white and blue uniforms to honor our wounded soldiers, but some people think that the Wildcats uniforms, designed by Under Armour, went a step too far with what appears to be blood splattered across the stars and stripes. According to Northwestern University spokesperson Paul Kennedy, the pattern “was inspired by the appearance of a flag that has flown proudly over a long period of time.”
America has always been die hard fans of pretty much anything that we feel the need to defend. Whether it’s our football or our soldiers, we are vehemently protective of our own. Now, how do you choose which institution is more important than another? The freedom of expression and speech vs. the support of our soldiers seem like values that would be supportive of one another, however with the recent limelight around Northwestern University Wildcat’s uniforms dedicated to the Wounded Warriors, several ethical questions have arisen.
It seems innocuous enough to tout red, white and blue uniforms to honor our wounded soldiers, but some people think that the Wildcats uniforms, designed by Under Armour, went a step too far with what appears to be blood splattered across the stars and stripes. According to Northwestern University spokesperson Paul Kennedy, the pattern “was inspired by the appearance of a flag that has flown proudly over a long period of time.”
Upon close inspection of the uniforms, there are also blue streaks like the red ones however they are not as prominent as the bright red over the white stripes.
I guess when you fly proudly so long, you’re bound to see some bloodshed and America is no stranger to combat. Families of war victims were quick to criticize the uniforms, with one father of a U.S. Marine calling them, “absolutely disgusting, insensitive, and disrespectful,” and another mother of a deceased war soldier calling the uniforms “gore porn.”
Whether the splatters are perceived to be blood or simply threads of the flag that have been exposed over time, the bigger issue is the actual depiction of the American flag on the uniforms which expressly goes against the U.S. Flag Code. Proper flag etiquette requires that “no part of the flag should ever be used as a costume or athletic uniform.” A flag patch only is allowed to be affixed to the uniform of military personnel, firemen, policemen, and members of patriotic organizations. Sorry Wildcats, I don’t think that donating proceeds to Wounded Warriors counts as being members of a patriotic organization.
While the Flag Code is a part of federal law, it is an advisory code only with no penalties for ignoring the rules. A law without penalty seems like one that is ineffective and thus Northwestern University nor Under Armour made any real fouls here, especially since this is a design modeled after the flag and not using real existing flags. The intention to honor our wounded has definitely been achieved and probably more so since this issue has hit the spotlight and ruffled so many feathers. While any publicity is good publicity, hopefully the designers tread a bit more lightly in the future when dealing with the emotions of our country’s fallen soldiers.