Courthouse removes flag after white supremacists display it

PORTLAND – An Oregon courthouse has taken down a flag that began as a way to honor fallen police officers, but has turned into a controversial symbol after white supremacist demonstrators in Charlottesville, Virginia, used the flag to promote their ideology.

Prior misrepresentations also stained the flag, which is a black-and-white American flag with a blue line across its center.

The Oregonian/OregonLive reported Thursday that the flag was removed from a break room in the Multnomah County Courthouse. County Sheriff Mike Reese says a Multnomah County commissioner raised concerns about the flag earlier this week.

The flag’s use by multiple groups has ignited controversy in the past. A Florida woman in March was asked by her homeowners’ association to take down her flag after complaints that it was anti-Black Lives Matter.