I don't know how old @Dawie was or @Yehuda57 was when the flag was changed. However, is it possible that the difference in attitudes stems from living in the RSA pre 1994 vs just learning about it as part of (recent) history (which one might have even lived through as a toddler?
Yes and no. I was born in '85 (9 years old in '94). There is zero nostalgia in the old flag for me. BUT, even if there is some nostalgia in the flag for someone older, anyone who waves it knows full well what it symbolizes and that it is racist and offensive. No one waves that flag in South Africa unless they are trying to be offensive.
I dont necessarily disagree with him
I disagree with "That neighbors did not realize doesn't make it less racist."
If i dont mean it to be racist, (which cant be said for the nazi flag) and they dont know it to be racist then how is it racist? except that now the Boer flag has been made in to an inherent symbol of racism. (and the fact that now everyone (at least the left) is looking to be outraged at at every nonsense)
Cubans fly Cuban flags, Venezuelans fly their flag....... their countries are far worse than RSA
South Africa HAS a flag for you to wave without choosing one that is offensive and racist. I've seen the flag many times in America (at weddings and other random places) it has never been the old flag. That one would choose the incorrect flag to show patriotism speaks volumes.
And Cuba and Venezuela? Really? Those are the examples you choose to compare to Apartheid? It's almost like you think Apartheid was only an economic disenfranchisement of blacks.