This is 99% invisible. I'm Roman Mars.

Nearly 50 years ago to the day, one of the darker chapters of American history unceremoniously came to a close.

Saigon, April the 30th, 8 o'clock, the last American helicopter on the roof of the American embassy

prepares to lift off the last of the evacuees fleeing before the advancing communist armies.

The United States had pulled direct military involvement two years prior, but the Vietnam War

officially concluded when Saigon fell to North

Vietnamese forces. As that chapter ended, a new one began for nearly two million South

Vietnamese refugees who fled to new countries in the decades after. We decided to mark the 50th

anniversary of the fall of Saigon by rebroadcasting an episode from the archive about the afterlife of a flag and how its meaning, for better or worse, continues to evolve long after the country it represents no longer exists.

Just to note, this episode does talk about the January 6th attack on the Capitol.

Since this story first aired in 2021, Trump has pardoned every single violent insurrectionist.

Nothing factually about the original reporting has changed. We just wanted to say that they were

violent insurrectionists, whether they are in prison or not.

I'm sorry to do this, but I'm going to take you back to January 6th, 2021.

I can see at least half a dozen protesters scaling, literally climbing.

A violent mob of Trump supporters attempted to overturn the 2020 election results with physical force.

They broke into the Capitol, disrupted the electoral college vote, and occupied the building for hours.

Like most of you, I had my butt clenched that day, watching the insurrection unfold on television.

Producer Vivian Lay.

I also happen to be watching that news coverage with my mom.

I see every channel. I watch ABC. I watch CBS. I watch CNN. I watch Fox. Every, every perspective.

This is my mom, by the way. Do you want to say hi to my boss real fast?

...