U.S. Flags to Fly at Half-Staff Nationwide on Memorial Day

Flags will fly at half-staff across the United States on Memorial Day, Monday, May 25. S. Armed Forces. The practice applies in every state. In New York, the POW-MIA flag will also fly over state buildings from sunrise to sunset.

Flag Protocol According to the U.S.

Flag Code, flags are raised to full-staff at sunrise before being lowered to half-staff. They are raised again to full-staff at noon. The half-staff position represents mourning; the midday change represents national resolve.

Day began as Decoration Day in 1868.

Congress established the current date—the last Monday in May—in 1971. S. Department of Veterans Affairs records the change.

Flags are lowered to half-staff on five other dates:

Peace Officers Memorial Day on May 15, Korean War Veterans Armistice Day on July 27, Patriot Day on September 11, Pearl Harbor Day on December 7, and when ordered by the president after a national tragedy. The American Legion encourages the public to follow the established protocol on all such occasions.