History is complicated

Ron Brocco, grand president of the Native Sons of the Golden West, takes a moment to observe the 175th anniversary of the Bear Flag Revolt at the Sonoma Plaza statue commemorating the raising of what would become the California state flag.

A Native Sons plaque, placed in 1907, marks the spot, and the day (June 14) was traditionally observed with a re-enactment ceremony and a BBQ party on the Square. It was a big deal. But in 2019, with the BLM movement came a critical reassessment of Sonoma’s white-centric past; last year, the debate, and the event, were sidelined by Covid. The event was then permanently canceled, though Brocco and a small group of members kept their part of the tradition alive this year with a small gathering.

Photo by William Murray.