American athlete under fire for carrying Mexican flag

[Lone_Star_Dem]

A U.S. athlete is under fire by some in the Mexican-American community for carrying a Mexican flag after winning a silver medal in the 1,500 meters.

Leo Manzano, a Mexican immigrant who became the first American man to win a medal in the metric mile since 1968, draped himself in the flags of both his countries after his race at Olympic Stadium. That decision earned some cheers, but mostly jeers from Mexican-Americans.


Ruben Navarrette Jr., a CNN contributor and Washington Post Group writer, was among those criticizing the flag choice. Manzano competes for the United States, not Mexico, Navarrette wrote. Why would he carry a flag of the country his parents left when he was 4 years old?

Some people will insist that this is Manzano's choice to make, that it was his sweat and sacrifice that got him to London, and this was his victory to celebrate however he saw fit. Those people are wrong. They're focused on the individual. But the last thing the Olympics is about is the individual.

More: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/olympics-fourth-place-medal/american-athlete-under-fire-carrying-mexican-flag-171127666--oly.html

[JoePhilly]

1. Yea, go to South Philly and tell the Italian-Americans who live there to stop

calling themselves Italian-American.

Then call us when you get out of the hospital.

[MrSlayer]

6. Yeah but if Joey Bagadonuts won a medal he would not be carrying an Italian flag.

It's one thing to be a proud Italian-American and another to be representing your country in an international event.

What this guy did is disrespectful. Go compete for Mexico if that's where your heart is.

[JoePhilly]

8. My ancestors are not from Mexico.

And your view is myopic.

And the Joey Bagadonuts guys I grew up with, were generally not the best athletes.

And ironically to your point, they claimed their allegiance to Italy, while standing in South Philly. They were, Italian FIRST.

The guy who ran Geno's Steaks, famous Philly chess steak joint ... he took a hard stand against Spanish speakers in his store in recent years (he died recently).

The funny thing is that when I was growing up in Philly, if you went into his chesse steak place and you ordered in Italian, you were welcomed like a long lost family member. That part of philly was well known for how many Italians from the old country lived there and spoke ZERO English.

It was a point of pride. But now, if you speak Spanish, you are unwelcome.

Most Americans are of mixed heritage. The Olympics bring together pepple from many nations. And no country has done that better than the US. We ARE the Olympic ideal.

But let's pretend we are not.

[MrSlayer]

13. I was born, raised and am still in South Philly.

And while what you are saying is true as far as the culture, it doesn't matter in this case, at all.

Just because people could order mediocre cheesesteaks from Vento's tourist trap in Italian has nothing to do with what flag they would be waving if they had won the gold medal in Olympic halfball. Vento was an uber jingoist.

I disagree with you and I disagree with the athlete carrying the Mexican flag.

[benld74]

2. Better go after the Pro bball players playing for their countries too!!!!

[former9thward]

14. Those players are not being supported by the U.S. Olympic Committee.

[roody]

3. BFD

[rurallib]

4. this time tomorrow my little town will probably have Mexican flags all over

during the gold medal soccer game.
So Mr. Navarrette, please stay away tomorrow. We don't need to be told a thing, thank you.

[flamingdem]

5. Well many parts of the US used to be Mexico

so maybe he's doing a retroactive thing?

[Glassunion]

7. Maybe he is just being a human hyphen in the photo.

Here in the US I'm labeled as "African-American", so on a technicality, wouldn't I be obligated to carry 2 flags?

[Lone_Star_Dem]

10. He's from Texas, so that would apply...

However, he is really just a proud dual citizen of both countries. Which is for some reason setting people off like fireworks.

[mathematic]

9. Nonsense. Manufactured Controversy.

Stupid sports media care more about some flag issue than the fact that AMERICAN DISTANCE RUNNING IS BACK.

Go Leo! Go Galen!

Btw, there's a not insignificant chance that Leo's silver gets upgraded to gold, like Kiprop's silver in '08. I'm going to wait a year before I give Makhloufi the all-clear on that performance.

Tomorrow's 5K final should be cracking, as the brits say.


Ok, now to put this nationality thing in context. Dozens of Olympians compete for countries that practically speaking, aren't their country. Plenty of Olympians switch their nationality to more easily make the Olympics.

Félix Sánchez, gold medal winner in the 400m hurdles was born in NYC, grew up in San Diego, and went to USC. He won that gold medal for the Dominican Republic. The list of Ethiopian or Kenyan born athletes that now compete for some rich oil kingdom is long. Olympic athletes do not compete solely for their country. In fact, there are athletes competing without any country at all! Ignorant people getting outraged for ignorant reasons should be no skin off anybody's backs.

Heck, Bernard Lagat competed for Kenya AFTER he got American citizenship. He took some flak for that though. Kenya doesn't allow dual citizenship so he wasn't even a citizen of Kenya at the time. There was some confusion about his eligibility. I've never met a Kenyan-American, or any American, that doesn't like Bernard Lagat (he's a likeable guy).

[flamingdem]

11. does this deserve an OP?: Former Undocumented Immigrant Leo Manzano Wins Silver Medal for U.S.

http://colorlines.com/archives/2012/08/former_undocumented_immigrant_leo_manzano_wins_silver_olympic_medal_for_us.html

[pepperbear]

12. "You're on in 5, Mr. Greenwood."

[sendero]

15. He trained..

.. he sacrificed, he competed, he won and if he wants to carry two flags that is his fucking right.

All of the pasty couch potato critics can win their own fucking medal and they can carry the flag or flags they choose.

In other words Mr. Navarette - STFU.

[cherokeeprogressive]

16. Considering he didn't get there on his own, he should carry the flag of the country whose citizens

helped him win the gold.

Did Mexico build the roads, bridges, and other infrastructure his parents used to get him to his practices? If his parents didn't take him, did Mexico build the sidewalks he walked to get there? Nnnnnope.

Did Mexico provide the police protection that let him sleep safely in bed at night? Nnnnnope.

So, if he didn't achieve this on his own, and Mexico didn't help him, whose flag should he rightfully have carried? To this question I believe there is but one correct answer.

[alp227]

18. Oh my, since when did DU become a forum for mindless flag-worshipping?

I thought we were better than those mindless right wingers and even some non-conservatives who start reacting like Muslims who saw a cartoon of Muhammad whenever the American flag is not completely 100% respected in some instance.

[Lasher]

17. What if the shoe were on the other foot?

Manzano could have competed on the Mexican team.

In that case, if he had won a medal as a member of the Mexican team, what if he would have waved the Mexican and US flags, claiming a victory for both nations? How many of you would have been defending him then?

[burrowowl]

19. Good on Him!

Maybe I'm a bit prejudiced since I am part Mexican.
And Viva Mejico! for their men's soccer team!