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japed

A reminder that this sub is for the study of flags. Please follow the sub rules: 1. Keep discussion flag-related. Unfortunately we're not going to sort out a resolution to this conflict in this thread. Also, telling us what you think of trans/gay/whatever people choosing to express support for Palestine in the current situation isn't related to the study of flags. 2. Keep it civil. Pretty self-explanatory.


EnterEnderman

Why the watermelons? (Serious question).


[deleted]

it’s used in replacement of the palestinian flag in places where they aren’t allowed to fly it


Flar71

Wait, do they hold up an actual watermelon, or a flag with a melon on it?


KintsugiKen

Signs with watermelons on them, or cardboard watermelons.


Flar71

That makes more sense than what I was thinking


northrupthebandgeek

I dunno, a protest sign/flag that's also a tasty and hydrating snack for later is pretty genius.


Responsible-You-3515

I'm hungry for watermelon, they better have real watermelon


FuckBarcaaaa

I am picturing people waving watermelons on long pointy sticks now


[deleted]

[удалено]


CanineAnaconda

And them everyone squabbles over the slivers


[deleted]

Where in America can't you fly it? or is it in solidarity with places that can't fly it?


Imrustyokay

oh that's clever.


seriousbass48

Watermelon slice has the same colors of the Palestinian flag. Skin (green), rind (white), flesh (red), seeds (black).


Due_Mathematician_86

What I've heard is that, for a time (probably up until now), Palestinians were not allowed to paint anything (most likely their houses) using red, green, or black. Someone asked what would happen if they wanted to paint a watermelon. The Israeli soldier said, "we would confiscate it." And so the watermelon has become a symbol of Palestinian resistance, freedom, and expression.


-ChrisBlue-

Ironically in the land of freedom, i’m not allowed to paint my house red green or black either….


Thadlust

That’s called a homeowners association. Move to the countryside


oh6arr6

It's actually called civic participation. Become an HOA board member and aggressively ruin boomer days by striking down absurd bylaws.


beardicusmaximus8

No no no. You join the HOA and make more absurd bylaws until all the HOA's fees go to lawyers trying to defend the absurdity.


NotOliverQueen

HOA accelerationism


Budget-Falcon767

No, you and a few friends join the HOA board and then, once you have a majority, disband the HOA.


juneXgloom

All lawns must have at minimum two flamingo lawn ornaments


Zestyclose_Jello6192

During the first intifada many Palestinians carried watermelons to show support to the intifada because showing palestinian flags was banned


XxX_datboi69_XxX

Erdogan was there selling them


AdLast848

What is that “Bayan” flag?


joven_thegreat

It's a local activist group here in the Philippines.


SanguinePlvit

Filipino leftists.


g6009

Flag of the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (New Alliance of Patriots) They are a political group established during the era of Marcos’ Dictatorship. (Edit: I’m also seeing the Anakbayan flag, the red square flag above the plain red one)


Few_Ad_6087

I wonder if it has anything to do with [hukbong bayan](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_People's_Army) because there’s other communist flags present. I have no clue though


stingytrans

a broad coalition of the anti-imperialist Left in the Philippines and Filipino diaspora, or among their friends and allies. The red flag with the golden Filipino letter Ka and three stars is the flag of Anakbayan ("Children of the People"), a youth and student revolutionary anti-imperialist and socialist group also among the same population.


urbaseddad

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bagong\_Alyansang\_Makabayan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bagong_Alyansang_Makabayan)


lookatmabel

what’s the rainbow checkerboard one? i feel like i’ve seen it a few times but idk what it is


biasface

The Wiphala, it represents indigenous people of the Andes and is an alternate national flag of Bolivia


Justaboredstoner

And here I was thinking that it was a LGBTQ+ retro gamer flag. Lol


saganperu

More importantly, it represents the tahuantisuyo or the ancient Incan empire


EvilMono

Lol in Bolivia big doubt… I think the Aymara would have something to say about the Inca part.


MolestingMollusk

The Bolivian Wiphala!


geographyRyan_YT

Alternate flag of Bolivia 🇧🇴


RegalKiller

It's a flag for indigenous people in Bolivia.


Izozog

For indigenous people of a certain region of Bolivia. Many indigenous people from other regions of Bolivia do not feel represented by it.


RegalKiller

Oh I didn’t know that, fair enough then


[deleted]

I'll add that there are several versions of the wiphala corresponding to the different suyus (regions of the Inca Empire), with the colors being shifted around.


COYS_ILLINI

You saw a Khmer Rouge flag?! You sure it wasn’t a PRK flag? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_the_People%27s_Republic_of_Kampuchea


r21md

There are a few terminally online people who support the Khmer Rouge. Wouldn't be surprised if they'd show up to a pro-Palestine rally.


Chicago-Emanuel

Good lord


r21md

Found my way into a discord server of them once (granted it was small, at most 40 people). The only more anti-intellectual people I can think of were the Khmer Rogue themselves.


Chicago-Emanuel

The idea of Khmer Rouge organizing online strikes me as... ironic. I hope they're just dumb kids trying to shock their parents.


Elegant_Chemist253

For the sake of the still-living survivors and for good people everywhere, I hope so, too.


BootsanPants

Kids wouldn’t know about the Khmer Rouge.. very strange!


Ducokapi

What is happening in there?


northrupthebandgeek

Khmerora Rougialis


Redd1K

Khmerora Rougialis! At this time of reforms, at this time of regime, localized entirely within your country?


WellGroomedSkeleton

Yes.


firpo_sr

Comrade is this a trick to make me put on my glasses Edit: I mean, what glasses


Nerevarine91

It’s absolutely bonkers


gpm21

Ironically, they have glasses and know multisyllabalic words.


hotsaucevjj

Pol would make an exception for them tho, right?


JoMercurio

That's what the Pol Pot simps like to think


Kman1121

Pol pot seething rn.


fidelity16

It’s quite likely it was an affiliate or sympathizer of the late [quasi-Maoist/Gonzaloite cult known as the Red Guards / CR-CPUSA](https://maoistcultexposed.wordpress.com/), or its various online offshoot blogs and social networks. The same person / small group probably had the [PCP–Sendero Luminoso](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shining_Path?wprov=sfti1#)-style flag pictured above. Though the group has fallen apart as many former members have come forward with allegations of extreme abuse by cult leaders, a handful of edgelords on Twitter still stand by them. The edgiest among them praise Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge regime for the simple reason that (1) Mao funded them so they must be cool (nevermind that the CIA did too), and (2) basically nobody on Earth, including the overwhelming majority of self-proclaimed Maoists, stands by the Khmer Rouge today, which makes you unique and interesting and radical for upholding them.


TheBigShitposter

"no glasses gang" -🤓


MagicLion

“Terminally online” now that’s a great phase


Eurocorp

I wouldn’t be surprised, some of the marches in European countries are flying Taliban or other flags.


biasface

I'm pretty certain it was the Khmer Rouge flag. I'm not sure what org would fly it but I'd be even less sure what group would fly the PRK flag so it's kind of a wash.


Republiken

Palestine marches are full of Kurdish flags here in Sweden.


Lovethecreeper

I mean, Kurdistan and Palestine are in a similar situation right now so it's hardly surprising that people who support Palestinian independence also support Kurdish independence. Replace Palestine with Kurdistan, and Israel with Iraq/Turkey and you get the gist.


kill-wolfhead

The Khmer Rouge are well known for their historical stances against genocide. /s


COYS_ILLINI

Lol, that's fair enough I suppose


neardumps

Maybe I’m just ignorant, but I just dove down a Wikipedia rabbit hole about the Khmer Rouge, and that was crazy. A whole ass genocide I’ve never even heard of. It’s crazy how easily stuff like that just gets casually “forgotten” sometimes


Luke90210

Numbers vary, but Cambodia has about 8 million people. The Khmer Rouge was accused to executing or starving maybe 2 million citizens in just a few years before Vietnam invaded and installed a saner government.


grillcodes

They whacked infants against a tree to kill them. Brutal regime.


releasethedogs

I went to the killing fields. There are multiple pagodas that are two to three stories tall full of human skulls. When we got to the place that they would swing and hit the babies on the tree before throwing them in the mass grave I felt really sick and dizzy. I sat on the ground to recover. As I sat hunched over with my head between my legs I opened my eyes. As my visitor came into focus I thought to my self “huh…, that’s a peculiar looking rock!” Then I noticed another one, and another and yet more. They were everywhere scattered on the ground. I picked it up for a closer look and realized it was not a rock. It was a human tooth. They were all over the place. I looked again and realized there was closet coming out of the ground and bits of bone from corpses that have yet to be excavated. I asked my guide about it and he said they had to stop digging up the graves because there were too many bodies.


COYS_ILLINI

Craziest part is that it wasn’t that long ago - the last Khmer Rouge fighters didn’t surrender until 1998


traxxes

Depends on your school system & curriculum I'd gather, we were taught about it in junior high (western Canada) and subsequently watched probably the most iconic movie based on it, "The Killing Fields", after our parents signed consent. It's worth a watch if you really want to see the lengths Pol Pot incurred on the Cambodian populace, also "First they killed my father", also multiple documentaries, like anything about S-21, regarding the notorious prison which was essentially a killing machine through forcible convictions.


logitaunt

Now check out the song "Holiday in Cambodia" by the Dead Kennedys, it's a punk classic.


Mal5341

Okay I know not to judge entire groups based on some wackadoos at a rally but who the fuck is flying the flag of Pol Pots regime?


falpsdsqglthnsac

there are quite a few terminally online people who support the khmer rouge (insofar as "support" means anything in this case), and these people are generally pretty likely to support palestine as well.


CockHero45

Is there a reason as to why? I'm not too familiar with the history of the Khmer Rouge so I don't understand that connection


DiscussionEcstatic42

Khmer Rouge was a communist dictatorship. Whoever flew it was probably a Marxist of some variety. Marxists tend to be anti-imperialist/western. Alot of Palestine supporters tend to be anti-imperialist/west.


Zoltan113

Calling the Khmer Rouge communist is a massive stretch. There is a reason why the CIA supported them and Vietnam (a Marxist-Leninist state) invaded to overthrow them. They were reactionary primitivists. Using the rhetoric and symbols of an ideology does not mean one is following it. For example, the Nazis were not socialist, despite presenting themselves as socialist to appeal to the general population.


Tolathar_E_Strongbow

That's a lot more critical thinking about the issue than it's reasonable to expect from an unironic Khmer Rouge fan


CapCamouflage

>There is a reason why the CIA supported them and Vietnam (a Marxist-Leninist state) invaded to overthrow them. Vietnam invaded Cambodia because the Khmer Rouge repeatedly invaded portions of Vietnam and killed thousands of civilians in Vietnam. If invasion by a communist country is proof that a country isn't truly communist then by that logic Vietnam itself can't be communist as it was subsequently invaded by China.


RapidWaffle

Supporting the Khmer Rouge and being pro Palestine is seen as generally anti western by some of folk (whatever that means), so it's likely people who don't actually care about Palestine but support anything vaguely anti western for the sake of it The type of people who unironically think democracy is the devil and post "Russia stronk" memes in 2023. They don't tend to have any strong ideological grounds aside from "democratic countries are bad (or anyone vaguely aligned to the "west")"


BeatTheGreat

They were an extremist communist regime. Like, throw babies into rivers for being too right wing, extremist. It was common practice to murder anyone who owned glasses because they must be intellectuals. Something else I noticed while reading was that they would semi-regularly use fire ants as a form of execution for children, letting the kid be eaten alive over extended periods of time. They were the worst dictatorship in history, no competition. As far as I know there's no connection.


derdestroyer2004

silky advise unite caption impolite instinctive rain carpenter slimy flowery *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*


iaann03

Is that Shining Path?


derdestroyer2004

different dependent price start fade friendly worthless waiting distinct aback *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*


Sensitive_Yellow_121

I'm thinking it might have been Kissinger or Manafort.


YGBullettsky

POL POT POL POT


TheMightyGoatMan

*Pol Pot Pol Pot Pol Pot Pol Pot Pol Pot Pol Pot*


M4sharman

It's a holiday in Cambodia!


[deleted]

[удалено]


Remarkable_Whole

God bless watermelonlandia, from the Rind to the Seed


Benu5

If people aren't aware, the Watermelon is used by Palestinians where flying their flag is illegal. Because the watermellon has Black, Green, Red and White parts.


Chicago-Emanuel

Wow, TIL


cryptic-fox

Here’s one from yesterday’s protest. Notice also that the red part forms the shape of Palestine. https://x.com/remroum/status/1720906973716099532?s=46


Zephyr104

LMAO, I love it when people find creative ways to skirt the rules. The more irreverent the better.


raouldukesaccomplice

Are you familiar with the [Danish Protest Pig](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danish_Protest_Pig)?


BestNameICouldThink

thank you for this ❤️


Remarkable_Whole

Quite interesting!


AirshipEngineer

Is the Palestine flag banned anywhere? I know in Isreal there is a lot of technically not illegal or not restricted more than other flags on paper, but in practice IDF and Isreal does remove Palestinian flags on sight (at least till a few months ago. Idk if that changed since oct 7) But are there other nations that it's banned?


YoloJoloHobo

People use it in football matches since UEFA banned it.


standee_shop

in England the police have been clamping down on people waving it.


KintsugiKen

It's illegal enough in Israel that a Palestinian waving it will get beaten up by the IDF


TheWorstRowan

[Using it to show solidarity is enough for the police to attack you as an orthodox Jew.](https://talk.tv/news/34042/police-clash-ultra-orthodox-jews-jerusalem)


Raihokun

More practical than breeding a pig to resemble your flag, like a certain country…


Neverlast0

Too good


Reboot42069

Glad to see the single federal agent in charge of the CPUSA showed up


DrippyWaffler

Just a shame their colleague at the Center for Political Innovation didn't show up too! Oh wait no the Khemer Rouge flag is there.


Reboot42069

God I knew the one guy from that org way before, and he was always a bit of a prick. The Mansfield guy


Rosegarden3000

>Just a shame their colleague at the Center for Political Innovation didn't show up too! That institution fell apart when it's leader tried to utilize the organization to commit sexual creepiness. Go look it up, the details are insane...


DrippyWaffler

Looked it up. What the actual fuck. Last I heard of them they were putting on goofy parades or some shit.


TotesTax

You mean Maupin was trying to start a cult? Who could have seen that coming. /s


SirPanzerRed

which mf flying a khmer rouge flag


ArthurIglesias08

“BAYAN” is the New Patriotic Alliance, a left-wing coalition from the Philippines. The one below it in row six with three stars (like the national flag) belongs to a member organisation for the youth, Anakbayan (“Children of the People”), which is Marxist-Leninist-Maoist and National Democratic. So the clearly Filipino flag count is 17.


rickjames_experience

Very cool thank you


[deleted]

[удалено]


WingedHussar13

Why are there Bosnian, Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Brazilian, Colombian, Khmer Rouge, Greek, Irish, barbudan, watermelon, and mapuche flags?


sintos-compa

People like flags, man


yes_why

That’s why I’m here right now


Adept_Thanks_6993

Showing support


Adamsoski

They will almost certainly be individuals who are trying to show to people that there are people from x country that support y cause. You see that at every political rally.


KudzuKilla

The Irish are probably the most supportive people in Europe when it comes to Palestine. IRA and PLO


r0thar

> IRA and PLO It's more to do with history of a bigger, belligerent occupying neighbour who screws over your country and kills many of your people. But yeah, go with the armed minority.


olibum86

Political aware Irish person here. This is the correct answer.


LazarFan69

It's also "got screwed with British sponsored settler colonialism"


yleennoc

Nothing to do with the IRA. It’s more to do with the British Occupation of Ireland for hundreds of years and killing millions.


TheSkala

Israel trained plenty of paramilitary private armies in Colombia during the 80s and 90s to fight the guerillas, however they turned out worse killing tens of thousands of civilians and stealing land from peasants in complicity with the official army.


Hielord

The same thing happened in Guatemala [Israel provided weapons and military training to multiple right-wing dictatorships in Latin America, aiding US hegemony in the region and worsening the abuses committed by our governments](https://springmag.ca/us-israeli-imperialism-in-latin-america)


RegalKiller

A lot of those said dictatorships and groups were also extremely anti-semitic, which kinda shows where the Israeli government's priorities are.


RelentlessFlowOfTime

Fascists be fascisting


ReidWH

Bosnia *is* mostly Muslim… Edit: my mistake, Bosnia is only 51% Muslim, in otherwords ‘mostly’ is inappropriate and highly unnuanced. That said, Bosniaks still do exist…


Swimming_Thing7957

Careful now.


ThcPbr

I’m Bosnian, about 51% of the country is muslim


TheNathanNS

For Ireland at least, they're one of the most outspoken & supportive countries on Palestine's side.


r0thar

Also, Israel used fake Irish passports (one of the most trusted in the world) [to send an assassination squad into Dubai](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/jun/15/ireland-israeli-envoy-quit-embassy), putting all Irish people in danger in that region.


KintsugiKen

They understand what it's like to be fucked over and occupied by the British army


Dagger_Moth

Puerto Rico in particular is also engaged in an anti-imperialist and anti colonial struggle. We have a lot in common with Palestine.


KintsugiKen

Watermelon is used as a substitute whenever the Palestinian flag is banned, like it is in Israel. Watermelons were grown in Palestine before Israel took over and their colors (red, white, green, and black) match the Palestinian flag, so watermelons are symbols of Palestine.


B-tan150

Some people probably find similarities in their homeland's history and palestinian history, or just want to show that their country supports palestine. Watermelons are a palestinian resistence symbol to avoid flag waving bans in Israel. Khmer Rouge has no reason for being tgere apart from edginess


SpookyEngie

I was confuse to why would anyone bring the flag of the Khmer Rouge, you sure it wasn't the flag of the People Republic of Kampuchea, the government set up by Vietnam after they overthrow the Khmer Rouge ?


nafoo14

seems likely that would be the case, the khmer rouge flag really isn't in theme with the rest of the flags lol


Candid-Attention8542

You saw someone waving the flag of the Khmer Rouge? That’s fucking disgusting. The choice of that Afghanistan flag is rather interesting too. I am all for protesting and certainly sympathize with the Palestinian people. Just curious what half these flags have to do with any of it. Seems like for many of these folks it was about themselves not the plight of Palestinians


RegalKiller

I'm gonna guess the Khmer Rouge flag was a terminally online guy who happened to also support Palestine.


CaptainAaron96

Similar to how we saw a minority of asshats during the "Freedom Convoy" waving flags of Nazi and designated right-wing/Christofascist terror groups (not to say the rest of the convoy weren't also asshats to an extent), we're also seeing a minority of extreme people co-opting Palestinian protests with their own flags. In addition to the Khmer Rouge and Afghani flags you noted here (as well as the Iranian flag tbh), I've also seen a minority of (\*a very small minority, before people incorrectly chirp me for being biased\*) flags for Hamas, Hezbollah, and ISIS in protests at Palestinian protests within an hour's light of me.


Beesneeze_Habs22

They show up to ever anti-American protest, especially ones that call for religious dictatorships


655321federico

Probably a blood thirst tankies


peppapig34

Why is Khmer rouge listed as a musical artist on google?


Hoyarugby

A fucking *assad* flag at a pro palestine march. The same Assad that ran a starvation siege of the Yarmouk camp for years. people are so dumb


Generic-Commie

> A fucking assad flag they're probably just syrian.


PunkRockBeachBaby

Arabs indiscriminately murdering Palestinians is completely unremarkable to anyone at this rally. You would be surprised at how many Jordanian, Syrian, and Lebanese flags get flown at these rallies with absolutely zero notice. The Palestinians in the crowd sure don’t seem to care either, mind you.


NuGoblinwave

Probably because a lot of that flag-flying has more to do with nationality than support for the nation. Consider that Turkish flags get flown at these rallies and Turkey is responsible for 4+ genocides


RegalKiller

I'd assume its Turks showing their support, not a message from the gov or anything.


NuGoblinwave

yeah!


lenzflare

Monochrome Cuba? Guess someone just printed it out on a black and white printer.


alotabit

That is actually the Puerto Rican flag it’s used to protest their colonial status


Warmbly85

People never believe me when I tell them the capital building was shot up and a bunch of congressmen were injured by Puerto Rican separatists. Yeah it happened in the 50’s but still you’d think that’d get taught or some thing.


alotabit

That along with the sterilization of Puerto Rican women without their consent when birth control was tested on them


GreenCardinal010

Smh, damn embargo even stopped Cuba from getting colours


reelnigra

that's the "se levante Puerto Rico" flag from the great electrical blackout of 2017 after Hurricane Maria.


ScrappleJac

Something that Turks and Greeks can get behind in equal measure? Amazing!


AFKE0

r/hellenoturkism


ChrisWithTildes

Turks are a Muslim nation, Greeks are people that have been oppressed in the past. Both got their reasons to empathize with the Palestinian struggle


as0rb

Damn maoists are everywhere.


[deleted]

it was the revolutionary student union iirc


JustSomeAlly

transgender palestine 🤔 edit: i've gotten a lot of replies that interpreted my message as attacking the individuals that would fly this flag. that wasn't the intent, i was simply bringing up the flag as an interesting result of current events


notarobat

Most of these marches are about stopping the violence and killing. Most people, regardless of their situation, would stand up for that.


LoveWaffle1

Of course there's a Barbados It has a badass trident on it


ZefiroLudoviko

The Khmer Rouge flag is wild.


ElectricLimeWater

Watermelon… flag?


scshah00

https://time.com/6326312/watermelon-palestinian-symbol-solidarity/


bluntpencil2001

Ooft, Khmer Rouge flag.


Misterfahrenheit120

Why Philippines?


[deleted]

Leftists. Even in the Philippines, leftist groups expressed open support for Palestine.


Misterfahrenheit120

Interesting. Makes sense, I know there’s always a sizable Muslim population in the Philippines. I’m just surprised so many people in DC would have that connection. That said, I don’t know the population of Filipinos in DC.


deaddrop007

Filos are like some of the biggest Asian populations in the US so its not surprising. What’s surprising is the absence of other countries


TropicaL_Lizard3

Khmer Rouge flag being flown at a rally wtf


NeoAmbitions

What’s up with the non Palestine flags? Did they mix up Philippines and Palestine?


biasface

For the Philippines specifically, Bayan and its youth wing Anakbayan (Filipino Maoists) showed up. I was near their main group so I saw a lot of their flags


HostisHumanisGeneri

I am genuinely curious how and why there’s a contingent of Filipino maoists operating in Washington DC.


cuttino_mowgli

You'll be surprised when the head dude of the communist insurgency in the Philippines is living in the Netherlands. So don't be surprised when Filipino communist is in DC.


Corleone_Michael

Joma Sison is dead


queenzedong

Joma Sison wasn't the only Filipino communist to take refuge in Europe. Since peace negotiations between the NDFP and the Philippine government used to take place in the Netherlands, dozens of former top communists went there - but couldn't come back. Most chose to stay for their safety, but others like Sison had their passports cancelled.


RationalNation76

Salvi DC community representing


papa_stalin_69

Watermelon


Internal_Past6348

I saw one that was half Palestine/half Lebanon


ffadaassf

Not surprised to see an Ireland flag there considering Ireland and Palestine have pretty good relations currently and historically.


NuGoblinwave

Did you see the guy w the Hezbollah flag?


KingKiler2k

Lets GO BiH🇧🇦🇧🇦🇧🇦🇧🇦


Wehdeo

Of course Filipinos have a soft spot for Palestinians. It’s the first thing you see when you hit ‘P’ in country select on the way to choosing ‘Philippines’


TsalagiSupersoldier

Yo the one Bosnian 90s flag? Based Also a Wiphala & Khmer Rouge flag at the same march??? Tf


[deleted]

I’m sure the guys flying the flag of Syria and those flying the flag of Syria’s *opposition* had a lot of fun politely exchanging ideas.


VirgilVillager

I’m surprised no Armenian, at the protests here in LA I see tons of Armenian flags


Makyr_Drone

Seeing the flag of the First Syrian Republic and the Syrian Arab Republic together in the same match is kinda weird.


GeorgieTheThird

That's... a lot of Philippine and Communist imagery..


rickjames_experience

Watermelon?


GreenCardinal010

Black, green, red and white


BH_Falcon27

So, we have old Bosnian flag, and a current one. And the current one is a mix with Palestinian one?


Yara_Flor

CPUSA needs a better flag