To show solidarity with Ukraine, many people around the world are displaying the country’s blue and yellow flag. Adam Easterbrook was one of them, until he was ordered to stop.
Last weekend, the Richmond, B.C., resident drew two Ukrainian flags on printer paper and taped them to his living room window. The following day, he looked outside to see an unknown man taking photos of the display.
Shortly after, Easterbrook got a phone call from the building manager, who told him the flags were violating the strata bylaw prohibiting residents from flying flags.
Easterbrook peeled the flags from his window to avoid getting a $200 fine.
“(Management’s) reasoning was that if they let us put up the flags, then everyone else is going to want to put up their own flags and do their own things,” said Easterbrook.
In an email to Easterbrook, the manager said the flags could create tension and a “political mess within the property.” The email also implies the manager is in support of Ukraine, as Russia’s invasion of the country continues.
Easterbrook was disappointed he and his partner could no longer express solidarity with Ukraine, until he had what some would call a bright idea.
“What we realized is they can’t control the lights we have,” said Easterbrook.
He swapped out the regular white light bulbs in his desk and floor lamps for blue and yellow bulbs. After reviewing the building’s bylaws, he found there were no rules against doing so.
“We made the bedroom and office blue, and the living room yellow,” he explained. “At night, if the blinds are open a bit, it looks like the flag on the outside.
“Realistically it’s a much bigger representation of what we wanted to do, so admittedly we were happy about that.”
Easterbrook’s second floor condo now glows blue and yellow every evening, similar to local Vancouver landmarks like BC Place, the Olympic Cauldron, and the Bloedel Conservatory.
The only downside, according to Easterbrook, is that the lights of solidarity are not easily seen during the day. He hopes the strata will allow him to fly the flags again, saying an exception should be made for the extraordinary circumstances Ukrainians are facing.
“They’re losing their culture, there’s a threat to their democracy, there’s talk of war crimes. All of these horrible things. If now isn’t the time to bend the rules and support a group of people, then really when is?” he said.
CTV News has reached out to the building manager for comment.
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