As tributes poured in for Madeleine Albright, the first woman to become Secretary of State and who died on March 23 at the age of 84, one tribute weirded out the internet.
Following the death of Albright, a McDonald's at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base decided to fly its flag at half-mast. An image of the flag went viral after New York Times reporter Carol Rosenberg, who covers the Guantanamo Bay area, posted it to Twitter.
The U.S. Navy base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, honors the service of former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, March 22, 2022.pic.twitter.com/TIkZv7SCXK— Carol Rosenberg (@Carol Rosenberg) 1648151317
The McDonald's flag would’ve violated federal flag code had it been flown above the United States flag, which makes sense, but the mere presence of a McDonald's on the naval base left many baffled.
How is this country real\nI swear to God this has to be satirehttps://twitter.com/carolrosenberg/status/1507081975470956548\u00a0\u2026— Hakim (@Hakim) 1648234375
Therapist: The McDonald's flag at half mast over Guantanamo can't hurt you.https://twitter.com/carolrosenberg/status/1507081975470956548\u00a0\u2026— Vivi Gonzalez \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\u26a7\ufe0f\ud83c\udff4\u200d\u2620\ufe0f (@Vivi Gonzalez \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\u26a7\ufe0f\ud83c\udff4\u200d\u2620\ufe0f) 1648160140
You know you've made a difference in the world when they even lower the McDonald's flag at Gitmo for you.https://twitter.com/carolrosenberg/status/1507081975470956548\u00a0\u2026— AJ LENAR \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 (@AJ LENAR \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8) 1648165675
So this is how I learn Guantanamo Bay has a McDonaldshttps://twitter.com/carolrosenberg/status/1507081975470956548\u00a0\u2026— Saint Honse\u2019s Day (@Saint Honse\u2019s Day) 1648172131
Interestingly, Guantanamo Bay has more than a McDonald's. A recent New York Times profile observed that the naval base, with houses more than 6,000 people, "has some of the trappings of small-town America, and some of a police state."
It has numerous restaurants, a school, a salon, parks with barbecue grills, pleasure boats for sailing and fishing excurisons, and other amenities befitting a college campus or typical suburban community.
But Guantanamo is also decidedly controversial for containing a military prison and cases of torture against prisoners, particularly since the War on Terror, have long horrified and galvanized human rights organizations that have called for the prison's closure.
Additionally, the Cuban government has for decades opposed the base's presence on its nation's southeastern flank, charging that it violates international law.
The ubiquity of a McDonald's at what many critics deem nothing more than a torture camp also earned heavy criticism.
For people in other parts of the world: the greatest form of respect in American culture is lowering the McDonald's flag at the local torture facility to half mast.https://twitter.com/carolrosenberg/status/1507081975470956548\u00a0\u2026— Jamie Samsa \ud83e\udeb2 (@Jamie Samsa \ud83e\udeb2) 1648304474
A McDonalds flag at half mast at the infamous Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba does seem like an appropriate send-off for Madeleine Albright.https://twitter.com/carolrosenberg/status/1507081975470956548\u00a0\u2026— Adam La Rusic (@Adam La Rusic) 1648298317
Guantanamo bay not only is a human rights violation, but seized territory that belongs to Cuba. Somehow having a McDonald\u2019s there makes it even more dystopianhttps://twitter.com/carolrosenberg/status/1507081975470956548\u00a0\u2026— Cat Bastard Quinn (@Cat Bastard Quinn) 1648211088
McDonald's is closing all 850 locations in Russia because war is bad. McDonald's has a location in Guantanamo Bay because...torture is good?https://twitter.com/carolrosenberg/status/1507081975470956548\u00a0\u2026— Brian (@Brian) 1648297915
a mcdonalds flag at half mast at a torture camp is the most american thing everhttps://twitter.com/carolrosenberg/status/1507081975470956548\u00a0\u2026— Sid The B\u24b6nished D\u24cbck\ud83c\udff4 (@Sid The B\u24b6nished D\u24cbck\ud83c\udff4) 1648166420
Albright played a central role in American foreign policy in the 1990s, first as the United States Ambassador to the United Nations and later as Secretary of State.
Her record of liberal internationalism, a foreign policy doctrine that aims to replicate domestic models of liberal democracy at the international level, has received increased criticism in recent years for shaping the 2003 Iraq War amid mounting dissatisfaction with American interventionism abroad.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung presenting U.S. President Donald Trump with honors and gifts at the Gyeongju National Museum in Gyeongju on October 29, 2025.Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images
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