Gadsden flag

The Gadsden flag is a historical US flag that originated in 1775 during the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). The flag was used by the pro-independence Continental Army to show that it opposed British imperialism. The Gadsden flag became a political symbol again in the United States in the early 2000s. Libertarians and others opposed to government overreach flew the flag. The flag became a controversial symbol in the 2010s because it was mostly flown by people with particular political beliefs. The flag has a yellow field with a coiled timber rattlesnake in the middle. The snake appears as though it is ready to strike. The motto below the snake reads, “Don’t Tread on Me.” The snake was originally meant to symbolize the American Colonies, as the Colonies were ready to strike Great Britain if it tested them or “tread on” them. Supporters of President Donald Trump also chose to display the Gadsden flag while protesting the results of the 2020 presidential election.

Background

The symbolism of the Gadsden flag was well-known to American revolutionaries in the 1770s when the flag was created. Founding Father Benjamin Franklin helped popularize the use of the rattlesnake as a symbol during the years leading up to the American Revolution. In 1751, Franklin’s newspaper, the Pennsylvania Gazette, published an article condemning the British practice of sending convicts to the Thirteen Colonies. The article made the satirical suggestion that the American colonies should repay the British government for the shipments by sending rattlesnakes to England. Franklin again used the rattlesnake as a symbol when he published the first American political cartoon. The image showed a rattlesnake cut into pieces, each labeled with the name of an American colony. The words of the cartoon read, “Join or Die,” indicating that the colonies had to unite and work together to defeat Great Britain or be defeated by it.

The popularity of the rattlesnake image caught on in the colonies. People liked the snake in part because they noted that it could not make a sound with only one piece of its rattle—the pieces of the rattle all work together to make the noise. The snake was also potentially deadly if someone stepped on it. People compared these features to the American colonies, which could work together to defeat Great Britain. A cartoon released in 1774 showed a whole rattlesnake with the motto “United Now Alive and Free, Firm on this Basis Liberty Shall Stand and Thus Supported Ever Bless Our Land Till Time Becomes Eternity.” By the time open war broke out between American revolutionaries and British forces in 1775, these images were widely recognized and used by supporters of American independence.

Overview

Colonists designed and used many flags before and during the American Revolution. Christopher Gadsden, a brigadier general in the Continental Army, developed his own design for a flag. He placed the popular rattlesnake image on a yellow background and added the words “Don’t Tread On Me.” Gadsden presented the flag to the colonial government to be used by the Continental armed forces. Gadsden’s design became popular when it was used by the Continental Navy. Commodore Esek Hopkins, the commander of the Continental Navy, raised the Gadsden flag or a similar flag when he sailed in February 1776. Other Continental Navy forces had the image of the Gadsden flag painted on their drums. The original Gadsden flag seemed to inspire other symbols and flags. For example, the first Navy jack (flag) had a field with thirteen red and white stripes with a snake in the center. It also used the slogan “don’t tread on me.” Gadsden’s design endured much longer than other so-called Liberty flags. The symbols of the Gadsden flag were clearly anti-British and pro-Continental forces. The rattlesnake on the flag, which had become a symbol for the colonies when they united and declared their independence from the British Empire, was clearly ready to strike at any target that threatened it. In the same way, the Gadsden flag was meant to show that colonies were united and would work together to defeat the British and earn their independence.

The Gadsden flag was a powerful symbol of the American Revolution, and after the colonists won independence from the British Empire in 1783, it endured as a symbol of liberty and the American Revolution. However, in the following centuries, the flag became popular with different political groups and began to take on new meanings. In the 1970s, some American Libertarians adopted the flag to show their belief that government should have a limited influence on people’s lives.

After the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001 and the subsequent beginning of the War on Terror, Internet searches for the Gadsden flag dramatically increased, and many Americans adopted the symbol to demonstrate their patriotism. People also began purchasing and flying the flag after President Barack Obama was elected in 2008 as a protest against his election and policies. The Tea Party Movement, which took its name from the famous Boston Tea Party during the American Revolution, grew out of this same opposition to President Obama. The movement adopted the Gadsden flag as its symbol to further emphasize its connection to the American Revolution and its opposition to what it perceived as modern government overreach.

After Obama’s presidency and the beginning of the Tea Party movement, the use of the Gadsden flag became associated with right-wing politics in the United States because it was associated with defending the limited use of government. However, to some Americans, it became a symbol for other popular ideas and ideologies in right-wing American politics, including nativism, gun rights, and other conservative causes. In 2014, a United States postal worker filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) stating that a fellow employee’s wearing of a hat with the Gadsden flag equated to racial discrimination. Although it was eventually decided that the hat did not necessarily indicate racial harassment, the case made an important point that symbols’ meanings change over time and can vary between people and groups.

As the 2020s began, the Gadsden flag remained a popular symbol among Americans who supported right-wing politics and among supporters of Republican President Donald Trump. During the early months of the COVID-19 Pandemic, as many states ordered lockdowns and other measures intended to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus, some conservatives displayed the flag at protests against these lockdowns. The flag also appeared during the storming of the Capitol on January 6, 2021, during which supporters of President Trump violently breached the US Capitol in an attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 Presidential Election, which Democrat Joseph Biden won. Despite its popularity as a conservative, right-wing symbol, the flag has also been used by liberals as a way to satirize conservative beliefs; for example, many liberals claim that the phrase “Don’t Tread on Me” contradicts conservative support for the police and other figures of government authority.

As the 2020s progressed, the Gadsden flag remained a controversial symbol. In 2023, a Colorado middle schooler was initially banned from wearing a patch displaying the Gadsden flag at school. School officials argued that the flag's association with racism and slavery made it inappropriate. The student was eventually granted permission after an outcry from state government officials, including Governor Jared Polis. In 2024, the Idaho Senate passed a bill allowing the creation of license plates displaying the flag. Eleven other states already have this license plate design. 

Bibliography

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