As drivers gather in Fairbanks and Big Lake, Alaska to convoy to the entrance of Denali National Park, the National Park Service has responded to the accusation that the superintendent at Denali National Park ordered construction workers to not fly the flag in the park.
The National Park Service’s statement in full:
“Reports that a National Park Service (NPS) official ordered the removal of an American flag from a Denali bridge construction worker’s vehicle at Denali National Park are false. At no time did an NPS official seek to ban the American flag from the project site or associated vehicles. The NPS neither administers the bridge project contract, nor has the authority to enforce terms or policies related to the contract or contractors performing the work. The American flag can be seen at various locations within Denali National Park – at park facilities and campsites, on public and private vehicles, and at employee residences – and we welcome its display this Memorial Day weekend and every day.”
The statement is carefully worded. The order to not fly the flag was reportedly not on the job site itself, which is under the purview of the Federal Highway Administration, but when vehicles went to and from the job site on the Park Road, which goes through the park from the Parks Highway. Must Read Alaska has verified the claim being made by construction workers, who stand by their version of the events.
Update from Sen. Dan Sullivan’s spokesman:
“Senator Sullivan stands by his letter. There is no law or regulation that he could conceive of that prohibits the flying of the American flag in an American national park. The fact remains that one of his constituents called the senator’s office because he was informed that he had to remove his 3 x 5 American flag after the National Park Service received a complaint about him flying the American flag on his truck. In a conversation this morning, between the Senator and the National Park Service Director, the director committed to providing more details to respond to the questions in the senator’s letter.
“Senator Sullivan also strongly recommended to the director that any Alaskans heading to the park today should be allowed to fly their flags in a safe and honorable way without incident.”
Earlier stories:
