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Flag of Minnesota

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

State of Minnesota
UseCivil and state flag
Proportion3:5
AdoptedMay 11, 2024; 6 months ago (2024-05-11))
DesignA light blue field with a dark blue K-shaped figure on the hoist side bearing a white eight-pointed star
Designed by
  • Andrew Prekker (base design)
  • Minnesota State Emblems Redesign Commission (final design)[1]

The state flag of the U.S. state of Minnesota consists of a dark blue field representing the night sky and the state's shape, an eight-pointed star representing the North Star, and a bright blue field representing the state's abundant waters; the star is based on one prominently featured in the Minnesota State Capitol rotunda.

Since its inception in 1893, the flag of Minnesota has had four official designs. Of these, the first three included a seal depicting a farmer plowing land while a Native American rides past on horseback. Initially created for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition, the first flag featured a white obverse side with the state seal surrounded by moccasin flowers, while the reverse was solid blue.[2] The design incorporated significant dates and the state motto, "L'Étoile du Nord." The flag was modified with a major redesign in 1957 that standardized the color to royal blue on both sides, and simplified the central design for cost-effectiveness and durability.

In 1983, it underwent another redesign to update the state seal and lighten the blue field.[3] This version of the flag retained the circular arrangement of stars and the state's name but faced criticism over its complexity, similarity to other state flags, and its depiction of Minnesota's history. These criticisms, particularly concerns about the depiction of Native Americans and compliance with vexillological standards, led to calls for a redesign.[4][5]

In 2022, the Minnesota Legislature established the State Emblems Redesign Commission to propose new designs for the state flag and seal. After extensive public input and deliberation, the commission selected the current flag design in December 2023. This new design was officially adopted on May 11, 2024. The flag has been praised by vexillologists for its simplicity and distinctiveness. It has been criticized for a perceived similarity to the flag of Somalia and for its plainness, and it faced opposition from rural counties. This flag change occurred amid a series of other American states changing their flags.[6]

Design and use

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The 2024 Minnesota flag flying outside the State Capitol on Statehood Day

Statute

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Minnesota statute 1.141 states that "The design of the state flag as certified in the report of the State Emblems Redesign Commission... is adopted as the official state flag."[7] The text of the law defers the details of the current flag's appearance and design to the Commission's report, which was dated January 1, 2024.[8]

Display and use

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The flag is to be flown over the Minnesota State Capitol from sunrise to sunset. When the flag is folded for storage, it should be folded in the same way as the national flag.[7] When folding the flag for presentation or display, it must be folded lengthwise four times, then each side must be folded down. The ends below the triangle must be folded in a complex way to form a triangle that is then tucked into the upper triangle. Instructions for folding the 1983 State Flag, developed by members of the Minnesota National Guard, were so detailed as to be confusing to some.[9]

Geometry and colors

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The flag has an aspect ratio of 3:5. The shape of the flag's dark blue region represents the shape of the state of Minnesota itself. The flag's white star is a regular octagram, having the Schläfli symbol {8/3}; the floor of the rotunda in the Minnesota State Capitol has an identical octagram design. The State Emblems Redesign Commission's report also contains an official construction sheet for the flag.

The flag uses three colors: dark blue, light blue, and white. Respectively, they represent the night sky, the waters of Minnesota, and Polaris, the North Star. The State Emblems Redesign Commission's report provided technical specifications for the flag's colors, alternately in the distinct Web color, CMYK and Pantone systems:[8]

Construction sheet
Name RGB, or Web color CMYK Pantone
Web color R G B Hex code C M Y K
White 255 255 255 #FFFFFF 0 0 0 0 White
Night Sky Blue 0 45 93 #002D5D 100 86 35 31 648
Water Blue 82 201 232 #52C9E8 59 0 6 0 305

Desecration

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Mutilating, defiling, or casting contempt upon the flag, attaching any design to the flag, or using the flag for advertising are misdemeanor offenses under State Statute 609.40, excepting flags on written or printed documents.[7] However, following the 1990 Supreme Court ruling United States v. Eichman, enforcement of this law has been deemed unconstitutional.[10]

History

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1893 flag

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Flag of Minnesota, 1893–1957
Obverse
Reverse

In 1891, the Minnesota legislature voted to sponsor an exhibition at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair, and in response then governor William Rush Merriam appointed a board to supervise the preparations. The board comprised only men, but preparations specific to the showcasing of "women's work" were passed off to an all-women group of volunteers known as the Women's Auxiliary Board. Minnesota had no official flag at that time, and the Auxiliary Board formed a six-person committee to design a flag. The committee held a contest to design the flag, and 200 entries were submitted. In February 1893, Amelia Hyde Center was announced the winner and received $15 (equivalent to $509 in 2023)[11] for her winning design.[2] The Board then successfully petitioned the legislature to officially adopt the design as the state flag.[12]

Center's design was white on one side and bright blue on the other. In the center of the white obverse was the state seal wreathed in white moccasin flowers overlaying a ring of blue. The seal depicted a farmer using a plow while a Native American figure on horseback rides to the west. A red ribbon across the seal bore a motto, L'Étoile du Nord (in French, "The Star of the North"). The years 1819 (establishment of Fort Snelling), 1858 (statehood), and 1893 (adoption of the flag) appeared in gold around the seal. "Minnesota" was written in gold under the seal, and 19 gold stars, representing the fact that Minnesota was the 19th state to be admitted after the original 13 states,[13] were arranged in clusters to form the five points of a star. Historians have noted the design was likely influenced by various flags used by Minnesota's infantry regiments during the Civil War, many of which consisted of a blue field emblazoned with either an American eagle or the state seal with a scroll.[2]

The first flag was made of silk and was embroidered by Pauline and Thomane Fjelde, who won a gold medal for their creation. The flag was adopted on April 4, 1893.[3]

While the reverse of the official design was a solid blue field,[14] some examples of the flag, particularly those mass produced in the twentieth century, featured the seal design on that side as well.[citation needed]

1957 flag

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Small vexillological symbol or pictogram in black and white showing the different uses of the flag Flag of Minnesota, 1957–1983

The flag was redesigned in 1957 in advance of the 1958 state centennial. Most significantly, the field of both the obverse (formerly white) and the reverse (formerly bright blue) were made royal blue; the unification allowed flags to be produced from a single piece of cloth, reducing manufacturing costs and making the flag more durable in high winds.[3][13] Separately, the white lady's-slippers depicted in the original were replaced with the pink-and-white lady's-slipper native to Minnesota.[15]

The central design featured three concentric circular fields. The innermost field was filled with a simplified version of the state seal. Around the seal was a ring of blue ornamented with a wreath of pink-and-white lady's-slippers and a red ribbon, upon which are written the years 1819 and 1893 (for the establishment of Fort Snelling and the first Minnesota flag, respectively). At the top of the blue ring the year 1858 is set in gold. Around the blue ring is a white ring upon which 19 stars form five radially arrayed groups. Each group contained four stars except for the top-center group, which had two stars of standard size and one larger than the rest, representing the North Star. The number 19 was chosen to symbolize the fact that Minnesota was the 19th state to enter the Union after the original 13.[16] The larger star at the top symbolized the North Star. Between the bottom two groups, the state's name was set in red. Both the blue ring and the white ring were bordered with gold.

Small vexillological symbol or pictogram in black and white showing the different uses of the flag Joseph Nelson's proposed flag (1957)

In 1957, another flag, designed by former adjutant General of the Minnesota National Guard Joseph Nelson, was proposed and endorsed by Rep. John Tracy Anderson. It depicts 19 stars forming the shape of a larger star, inside a vertical triband of red on the left, white in the center, and blue on the right. [17]

1983 flag

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Small vexillological symbol or pictogram in black and white showing the different uses of the flag Flag of Minnesota, 1983–2024

In 1983, the seal was redrawn, and the color field was lightened from a royal blue to a medium blue; the shade could vary in different flag makers' designs.[3] The flag was rectangular and featured a design emblazoned in the center of a field of blue. According to statute, the flag was bordered with gold and finished with gold fringe,[7] but this was rarely used and more common on indoor flags.[citation needed]

Several changes were also made to the seal in this year. The Native American figure was turned to face farther south, more towards the farmer. Also, the Mississippi River and St. Anthony Falls were added to the seal to note the importance of these resources in transportation, industry, and the settling of the state. Beyond the falls on the seal, the state added three pine trees representing the state tree (the Norway pine) and the three pine regions of the state: the St. Croix, Mississippi, and Lake Superior.[18][19] Around the seal, the flag still showed three notable years in Minnesota history (1819, 1858, and 1893),[7] the pink-and-white lady's slipper, and 19 stars placed the same as in 1957.

Criticism of the 1983 flag

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The 1983 revision of the flag came under growing criticism. Longstanding frustration with its illegibility,[20] similarity to other state flags, and failure to comply with vexillological best practices.[21] This was joined by concerns that the image depicted in the seal offered a negationist view of Minnesota's settlement by Europeans that concealed the violence committed against Indigenous peoples.[22][4]

Proposed North Star Flag

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The North Star Flag features of blue over a field of green separated by an undulating white band. A yellow five-pointed star in emblazoned in upper left.
Small vexillological symbol or pictogram in black and white showing the different uses of the flag The "North Star Flag", which won an unofficial contest in 2001, was originally proposed in 1989.

The North Star Flag design was created in 1989 by Lee Herold and Reverend William Becker.[5] The flag has the colors of green, representing forests, white, representing winter, and blue, representing water. A yellow star in the top left represents the North Star and the state's motto, L'Étoile du Nord.

Herold had opposed the official state flag since its creation when he was in high school.[23] In 1995, he left his career as an accountant and opened a flag store, Herold Flags, in Rochester, Minnesota. He presented the proposal to state legislators in 1989, supported by Republican representative Gil Gutknecht.[24] However, the North Star Flag design was never officially adopted by the state.

2024 flag

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2023 Redesign Commission

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On March 22, 2022, two Democratic-Farmer-Labor members of the Minnesota House of Representatives, Mike Freiberg and Peter Fischer, introduced a bill to redesign the state's flag and seal. Fischer began supporting a flag redesign in 2017 after a group of high school students raised the issue to him.[5][24] The law outlines specific guidelines for the redesign, stipulating that the new designs "must accurately and respectfully reflect Minnesota's shared history, resources, and diverse cultural communities" and that symbols representing only a single community or person are prohibited.[5] It was proposed as part of a state budget bill and was opposed by Republican representatives, who viewed it as a low priority.[25][26]

In May 2023, as a part of the annual state budget, the Minnesota Legislature established the State Emblems Redesign Commission, tasked with proposing new designs for Minnesota's flag and seal.[27] The legislation dictates that, barring any contrary legislation, the chosen flag design will be adopted as the state flag on May 11, 2024.[28] The committee has 13 members, including representatives of the Indian Affairs Council, the Council for Minnesotans of African Heritage, the Minnesota Council on Latino Affairs, and the Council on Asian-Pacific Minnesotans, along with three members of the general public appointed by Governor Tim Walz.[29] The committee held its first meeting on September 5.[30]

In October 2023, the committee received public input to suggest flag designs. A total of 2,123 flag and 398 seal submissions were received.[31] Common themes included the state bird (the loon), lakes and rivers, and the North Star.[32] More diverse entries included a photograph of a dog, a photograph of a wooden floor, national flags and imitations of them such as those of the Soviet Union, psychedelic monkey drawings, and a design depicting a loon shooting lasers from its eyes similar to the Laser Kiwi flag proposed during the 2015–2016 New Zealand flag referendums.[33][34] Several entries were just unchanged images of the existing flag of Minnesota.

On November 21, 2023, the commission met in the Minnesota Senate Building to review the selections.[35] Despite having planned to select five flag designs, the group chose six finalists.[36] All the finalists featured a star motif, the colors blue and white; none featured the loon, which the committee believed represented only part of Minnesota.[37] Herold attended the hearing, but his North Star Flag design was not a finalist.[38] On December 13, the number of flags was narrowed to three, F2100, F944, and F1953.[39]

At the time of the redesign, multiple American states were considering changing their flags. Utah had replaced its flag to be more distinctive the prior year, and Mississippi had replaced its flag in 2021.[48]

Final design

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On December 15, 2023, the committee decided that the final flag would be a variant of F1953, eliminating F2100 and F944.[49] By December 19, 2023, after much deliberation on specific design aspects, the commission had settled on five variations of F1953 to be the subject of the final vote.[50]

The star was modified in the final designs to resemble the eight-pointed star found in the Minnesota State Capitol rotunda

A2 was selected by the commission as the finalized design on December 19, 2023, with 11 out of 12 votes (B2 having received 1 vote).[50] Thus, the new state flag consisted of an all light-blue banner with a simplified shape of Minnesota on the hoist in dark blue and a simplified eight-pointed star in the center of the shape.[51][52][53] According to the commission, the eight-pointed star is a design used by indigenous and immigrant cultures, forms the shape of the letter M, and matches a design on the floor of the Capitol's rotunda that points north.[54]

The flag officially became the new state flag on May 11, 2024.[55]

Reception

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Initial responses to the final design included both praise and criticism for its simplicity, as well as praise for its symbolism.[56] Ted Kaye of the North American Vexillological Association called the new design "outstanding" and said that it has a place in the top 10 flags of the U.S.[57] A local news station poll found that just 23% of Minnesota voters supported switching to the new flag, while 21% supported replacing the flag with a different design and 49% wished to keep the existing flag.[58]

Democratic leaders praised the community input and the removal of the old flag's offensive imagery as successes.[59] Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan, who did not fly the former flag in protest of its depictions of Indigenous people,[60] celebrated it as an "upgrade" that allows it to represent every Minnesotan.[61]

Right-wing critics claimed the flag was similar to the flag of Somalia or of the Somali region of Puntland. Officials said the resemblance was a coincidence, citing the Minnesota-specific meaning behind the colors and symbolism. Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon further countered these claims, noting similarities in Iowa's flag to France's and Texas' flag to Chile's.[62][63]

Several rural counties, including Crow Wing, Houston, McLeod, Nobles, Becker, Mower, and Brown, passed resolutions opposing the flag in general, or the process by which the new flag design was chosen. In early March 2024, Republican state legislators announced plans to introduce a series of bills that would put the flag design to a public vote, but the bills did not come up for a vote during the 2024 legislative session.[64][65][66][67][68][69]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "SERC – Next Minnesota State Flag". www3.mnhs.org. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c Becker, William. "The Origin of the Minnesota State Flag" (PDF). Minnesota State Legislature. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  3. ^ a b c d MN Territorial Pioneers, Inc. "Flag of the State of Minnesota". Archived from the original on October 25, 2010. Retrieved February 20, 2011.
  4. ^ a b Grindy, Mark (July 3, 2020). "Racist state flags need to go — Minnesota's is next". Star Tribune. Archived from the original on December 10, 2022.
  5. ^ a b c d Derosier, Alex (March 25, 2022). "Minnesota's state flag doesn't get much love. Why it vexes experts who want it changed". Duluth News Tribune. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  6. ^ Smith, Mitch; Almukhtar, Sarah (August 17, 2023). "How States Are Threading the Needle on Flag Design". The New York Times. Retrieved October 25, 2024.
  7. ^ a b c d e "1.141 Official State Flag". Office of the Revisor of Statutes. State of Minnesota. 2006. Archived from the original on March 29, 2019. Retrieved October 7, 2007.
  8. ^ a b Minnesota State Emblems Redesign Commission (January 1, 2024). "The New Official Flag and Great Seal: Report of the Minnesota State Emblems Redesign Commission to the Minnesota Legislature and Governor" (PDF). Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State.
  9. ^ Brunswick, Mark (May 4, 2010). "Let 'L'Etoile' shine when folding the flag". Star Tribune. Archived from the original on August 11, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  10. ^ Mercer, David (August 1, 2016). Written at Urbana, IL. "States' flag-burning laws unconstitutional, but persist". The Daily Record. Baltimore, MD. Associated Press. Archived from the original on August 2, 2016.
  11. ^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
  12. ^ Convery, William (July 10, 2023). "Who designed the Minnesota state flag?". MinnPost. Retrieved October 25, 2024.
  13. ^ a b "State Symbols" (PDF). Minnesota House of Representatives.
  14. ^ "The State's Banner". St. Paul Daily Globe. March 31, 1893.
  15. ^ "The State Flag of Minnesota". Minnesota State Mankato. Archived from the original on October 6, 2007. Retrieved October 7, 2007.
  16. ^ "State Flag". Minnesota Secretary of State. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
  17. ^ "Proposal for a new Minnesota state flag (1957)". Retrieved May 27, 2023.
  18. ^ "Minnesota Statutes – 1.135 State Seal". Office of the Revisor of Statutes. 1983. Archived from the original on June 9, 2012. Retrieved June 9, 2012.
  19. ^ "About the Minnesota Flag, its adoption and history". Netstate. Archived from the original on August 11, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  20. ^ Kaye, Ted. "2001 State/Provincial Flag Survey". North American Vexillological Association. Archived from the original on February 23, 2015.
  21. ^ Knowlton, Steven A. (June 2024). "A Sky-Blue Flag for the Land of the Sky-Tinted Water". Vexillum (26). North American Vexillological Association: 20–30.
  22. ^ Harrington, Judith (July 2, 2015). "As long as we're discussing flags, what about Minnesota's?". Star Tribune. Archived from the original on January 7, 2023.
  23. ^ Huppert, Boyd (June 26, 2023). "Minnesota to get a new state flag. Meet the man who spent decades trying to change it". KARE 11. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  24. ^ a b Croman, John (March 23, 2022). "Minnesota lawmakers ponder changing flag and seal". KARE 11. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  25. ^ "New State Flag? Proposal At Minnesota Capitol Would Move To Change It". CBS News-Minnesota. April 13, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  26. ^ Brooks, Jennifer (April 23, 2022). "Oh say can you see a better flag for Minnesota". Star Tribune. Minneapolis. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  27. ^ "HF1830". Office of the Revisor of Statutes. 2023.
  28. ^ "HF 1830 4th Engrossment". MN Revisor's Office. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  29. ^ Cummings, Caroline (June 27, 2023). "Group will put forward a new design for Minnesota state seal, flag by next year". CBS News. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  30. ^ Fitzgerald, Kilat; Henry, Ben (September 5, 2023). "Commission on redesigning Minnesota's flag holds first meeting". KSTP News. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  31. ^ Swanson, Steve; James, Derek (November 8, 2023). "Whole lotta loons: 2,000-plus submissions unveiled for new Minnesota state flag, seal". CBS News. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  32. ^ Willingham, AJ (November 14, 2023). "Minnesota has gotten more than 2,500 design submissions for its new state flag. There are a lot of loons". CNN. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  33. ^ Brooks, Jennifer (November 9, 2023). "Land of 10,000 flags (and loons with laser eyes)". Star Tribune. Minneapolis. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  34. ^ Hoff, Jennifer (November 8, 2023). "For better or worse, thousands of new Minnesota flag designs are publicly released". KARE 11. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  35. ^ Derosier, Alex (November 21, 2023). "Panel picks 6 finalists for redesigned MN state flag — and none have loons". Pioneer Press. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  36. ^ Hoff, Jennifer (November 21, 2023). "Here are the six finalists for a new Minnesota flag". KARE 11. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  37. ^ Bierschbach, Briana (November 21, 2023). "Here are the six finalists for a new Minnesota state flag and five for a new state seal". Star Tribune. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  38. ^ Stolle, Matthew (November 22, 2023). "Six finalists are picked to be the new state flag; North Star flag was not one of them". Post-Bulletin. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
  39. ^ Gorham, Quinn (December 13, 2023). "A closer look at each of Minnesota's three flag finalists". KTTC News. Retrieved December 15, 2023.
  40. ^ Ferguson, Dana (November 28, 2023). "Minnesota North Star motto inspired Luverne designer's Minnesota flag entry that is now among 6 finalists". MPR News. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
  41. ^ Ferguson, Dana (December 4, 2023). "Flag designer living in Lone Star state hopes to win over North Star state panel". MPR News. Retrieved December 13, 2023.
  42. ^ Pitman, Todd; Peter Pitman. "Mirror of the Sky – A new flag for Minnesota". Retrieved November 24, 2023.
  43. ^ a b c Wurzer, Cathy; Brian Bakst; Alanna Elder; Estelle Timar-Wilcox (November 22, 2023). "Meet 3 people whose designs are finalists for the new Minnesota flag". MPR News. Retrieved November 26, 2023.
  44. ^ Wittnebel, Aaron; Olson, Bjorn; Drazkowski, Steve (December 29, 2023). "Minority Report" (PDF). Minnesota State Emblems Redesign Commission. p. 10. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  45. ^ Hundot, Brandon (October 26, 2015). "The latest design for a new Minnesota flag is inspired by l'etoile du nord". Retrieved November 24, 2023.
  46. ^ Ferguson, Dana (November 30, 2023). "Designer's state seal entry could be last hope for loon-loving Minnesotans". MPR News. Retrieved December 13, 2023.
  47. ^ Needham, Emma (November 22, 2023). "A Flag That Unites Us – MN Redesigns State Flag". Minnesota Native News. Retrieved November 24, 2023.
  48. ^ Murdock, Hannah (December 20, 2023). "Minnesota unveiled a new flag. What states have gotten new flags in recent years?". Deseret News. Archived from the original on December 27, 2023. Retrieved July 24, 2024. Minnesota is the latest state to opt for a more minimalistic state flag.
  49. ^ "New Minnesota state flag selected". FOX 9. December 15, 2023. Retrieved December 15, 2023.
  50. ^ a b Madison McVan (December 19, 2023). "Commission finalizes new Minnesota state flag". Minnesota Reformer. Retrieved July 29, 2024.
  51. ^ "This is Minnesota's new flag". FOX 9. December 19, 2023. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  52. ^ Cummings, Caroline; Bettin, Anthony (December 19, 2023). "Minnesota's new state flag design is finalized – CBS Minnesota". CBS News. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  53. ^ Ferguson, Dana (December 19, 2023). "Let it fly: Minnesota officially has a new flag". Minnesota Public Radio. What I've struggled with is the stripes, the stars and stripes, it feels predictable, it doesn't necessarily feel different," said commission member Kate Beane about the original concept as she advocated for the simpler design. "I understand the nod to agriculture. I think having the outline of the state is a nod to the land base and is a nod to agriculture.
  54. ^ State Emblems Redesign Commission (January 1, 2024). "The New Official Flag and Great Seal" (PDF). Report of the Minnesota State Emblems Redesign Commission to the Minnesota Legislature and Governor: 20.
  55. ^ Bierschbach, Briana (December 19, 2023). "'It's going to last': Minnesota panel settles on final state flag design". Star Tribune. Minneapolis. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  56. ^ Van Oot, Torey (May 10, 2024). "Minnesota's new state flag takes flight". Axios Twin Cities. Retrieved September 19, 2024.
  57. ^ Crann, Tom; Ngoc Bui (December 19, 2023). "Flag expert calls new Minnesota state flag 'outstanding,' top ten in the country". MPR News. Retrieved December 20, 2023.
  58. ^ Hauser, Tom (February 2, 2024). "KSTP/SurveyUSA poll: Minnesotans want sports betting, Social Security tax elimination". KSTP News. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
  59. ^ Karnowski, Steve (January 4, 2024). "Things to know about MN's new, non-racist state flag and seal". Pioneer Press. Retrieved September 19, 2024.
  60. ^ Murphy, Esme (January 29, 2024). "Gov. Tim Walz responds to Republican criticisms of new state flag". CBS News. Retrieved September 19, 2024.
  61. ^ "Minnesota Reveals New State Flag, Replaces Old Design of Native American Being Displaced". Native News Online. December 20, 2023. Retrieved September 19, 2024.
  62. ^ "Minnesota replaced its 'racist' flag. The new one is facing its own outrage". The Independent. December 20, 2023. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  63. ^ Jr, Bernd Debusmann (December 20, 2023). "Minnesota unveils new state flag design". BBC News. Retrieved September 18, 2024.
  64. ^ Herald, Daily (February 14, 2024). "Commissioners approve resolution asking that new flag, seal decision be rescinded". Austin Daily Herald. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  65. ^ Smith, Kelly; Tribune, Briana Bierschbach Star (January 27, 2024). "New Minnesota state flag becomes partisan issue in 2024". Star Tribune. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  66. ^ "Becker County comes out strongly against new state flag". Detroit Lakes Tribune. February 7, 2024. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  67. ^ "Brown Co. Board OKs resolution opposing state flag redesign process". nujournal.com. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  68. ^ "Nobles County commissioners adopt resolution opposing new Minnesota state flag, seal". Worthington Globe. January 24, 2024. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  69. ^ "GOP lawmakers seek public vote on new Minnesota state flag". kare11.com. March 5, 2024. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
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