We are good at sending soldiers abroad. We are worse at remembering them when they return

Flag Day is not only about flying the flag. It is about remembering. If Denmark truly respects those who fought for the country, it must also have the courage to remember the whole history of the war it asked them to wage.

That is the argument made by Villads Pauli Bech, defense and foreign affairs spokesperson for Liberal Alliance Youth. For most Danes, Sept. 5, the day dedicated to Denmark’s deployed personnel, is simply another date on the calendar. For others, it is a day filled with comrades, memories and loss.

The gap between those experiences says something about how little Danish civil society engages with the people it sends to war, the article argues. Respect cannot stop at ceremonies or flags. It must also include an honest willingness to remember what those deployments meant and what they demanded of the people involved.

Flag Day, in Bech’s view, should mean more than it currently does. Remembering the troops means remembering not only their service, but also the complete history of the conflicts Denmark asked them to enter.