Raising (Issues About) the Banner

A Critical Reflection on the New Zealand Flag Debate

Abstract

Reviewing the historicity of flags in this country, and psychological as well as sociological and political theory, this article offers a critical reflection on the recent flag debate in Aotearoa New Zealand. As such, the article reflects the author’s interest in the psychotherapy of politics, which includes: ‘a range of attempts to understand and to evaluate political life through the application of psychotherapeutic concepts’. This and other contributions to putting culture—and politics—on the couch not only aim to develop a political analysis that is more psychologically and psychotherapeutically informed, but also to help people move from reaction and inaction through insight to social action.