The U.S. state of Minnesota faces fierce backlash over its new flag design. In the next few weeks, state officials will remain busy explaining why the newly approved state flag is similar to that of a Somali region.
After repeated and overwhelming calls, Minnesota’s people finally wished for a new state flag. The state decided to discard its former flag for its controversial imagery, which seemed to promote racism.
The former flag, which dates back to 1957, showed a farmer chasing away a Native American. The Native American, who was on a horse, seemed to be moving away from the farmer, who was armed with a rifle and a plow. Many Minnesotans believed that the image portrayed the unfortunate displacement of Native Americans in the state.
Therefore, the people highly hoped the State Emblems Redesign Commission would approve a new flag design. Expectations were, however, dashed after the commission came out with a more controversial flag.
The new flag, which the commission approved with an overwhelming vote of 11 to 1, resembles the flag of the Somali region of Jubaland and the Somali state of Puntland. But the controversy gets even more profound.
Many have subtly fingered Minnesota congresswoman Ilhan Omar, who hails from the Somali state of Puntland. “The U.S. is losing its identity,” cried a social media post on the issue. Minnesotans believe the new design is a deliberate attempt to uproot the state’s identity.
The new flag features a dark blue silhouette adorned with a white-colored eight-point star. The flag also contains a triangle and rectangular merged shape with light blue, white, and green horizontal stripes.
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But 24-year-old Andrew Prekker, who designed the flag, disagrees with the insinuations. Prekker said he drew inspiration from other state flags like Texas, Arizona, and Colorado. He revealed that the presence of the North Star was an attempt to reflect the state’s motto, “L’etoile Du Nord,” which means “The star of the north.”
Prekker also explained his choice of colors for the flag. He says the green stripe reflects the state’s abundant vegetation and agricultural reputation. The white stripe portrayed snow and winter, while the blue represented the massive body of water in the state. Minnesota is known for its over 10,000 lakes.
The explanation has, however, not been enough to douse the flames of anger and speculation about the new flag. The Republican-leaning X (formerly Twitter) account, End Wokeness, has raised the alarm about the resemblance in several posts.
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One of the posts read, “Minnesota is home to the largest Somali population in the West. Rep. Ilhan Omar (Minnesota) is from Puntland. Minnesota just unveiled its new flag. I’m sure this is just a coincidence.”
Minnesota has responded to the outcry by changing the flag’s design. Last week, on December 19th, the commission approved a final version with no stripes that look less similar to the Somali state flag.
The commission also approved a new state seal, both of which will become official in May 2024.
Commission vice chair, Dr. Anita Gaul, has lauded the over 2000 flag design submissions that she says have contributed to the final design “that Minnesotans are going to rally behind and be proud of.”
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