Laguna Beach police cars with an American flag logo on their patrol cars are under fire from some residents for being "too aggressive" and "militaristic" for possibly offending immigrants.
The Orange County town's city council initially approved American flag lettering for its police department but after community outrage, the city will decide Tuesday if the cop cars will lose the red, white, blue bold paint from their Ford Explorers.
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"Unfortunately this has devolved to a debate about what the flag means," Laguna Beach Council member Steve Dicterow told "Fox & Friends" Monday. "There are people in Laguna Beach...saying that the flag is hostile, it's intimidating, it's threatening, and that it's a symbol of racism."
One resident, Carrie Woodburn, pointed out the "amazing community of artists" in the area and said it "feels very aggressive."
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"I defend their right to say these things," Dicterow added. "I also have the right to disagree with that. I believe that the flag is a symbol of equality and of freedom, and it's that very freedom that our police are protecting."
But Dicterow said the outrage has unified the community with support flowing in from across the country.
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Councilman Peter Blake told "Fox & Friends First" the opponents are left-wing extremists, "local hippies leftover from...1970," and labeled it a "California issue."
Blake said he doesn't want to deride the local artist but added that they could take two years to decide between puppies and dolphins but it's just not practical.
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"The fact that we have the flag. The fact that we have a black and white car, and the fact that we were able to make a decision in a relatively short amount of time to get our police back on the road in a car that appears to be aggressive enough to deter crime is a miracle," Blake said.
The city council is set to vote Tuesday on whether to keep the logo or choose an alternative.
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