Inverting the Stars and Stripes is increasingly being used by both sides of the political aisle
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:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/IMG_4737-8b5b28d8b0e4469cbec8fe71e041ff12.jpeg "How Flying the American Flag Upside Down Became a Bipartisan Act of Rebellion (1)")
Virginia Chamlee is a Politics Writer at PEOPLE. She has been working at PEOPLE for three years. Her work has previously appeared in The Washington Post, Buzzfeed, Eater, and other outlets.
Updated on March 22, 2024 06:08AM EDT
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(879x12:881x14)/upside-down-flag-rebellion-symbol-081022-0cfe28b3979848a0ab0cd9b33d175fa9.jpg "How Flying the American Flag Upside Down Became a Bipartisan Act of Rebellion (2)")
According to the U.S. Flag Code, flying the American flag upside down is only meant to be done "as a signal of dire distress in instances of extreme danger to life or property."
These days, however, hanging the Stars and Stripes upside down is seen as more of a symbol — a symbol Republicans and Democrats alike are beginning to use more and more.
What does it mean when an American flag is upside down?
Since June 2022, progressive activists have begun flying their flags upside down, particularly in the wake of the Supreme Court decision to overturn the landmark abortion case, Roe v. Wade.
Months later — amid fury over the FBI's search of Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence on Aug. 8, 2022 — it became a symbol used by the former president's most loyal allies.
That same day, controversial Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene tweeted an upside-down American flag with no words, sandwiched by posts comparing the "rogue" United States to a communist country and calling to "DEFUND THE FBI!"
Greene's use of the upside-down flag is one of a string of instances in which pro-Trump Republicans have described the country in decidedly un-American terms.
Phrases like "banana republic" and "tyranny" were used to characterize the state of the U.S. following news that the FBI executed a federal search warrant at Trump's home.
Talks of a looming "civil war" have also cropped up on Trump message boards (and by Greene herself, who tweeted that she was leaning into such discourse within the Republican Party, hinting that events reflected a country at war with itself).
"I've talked a lot about the civil war in the GOP and I lean into it because America needs fearless & effective Republicans to finally put America First," Greene wrote on X (formerly Twitter) on Aug. 9, 2022. "Last night's tyrannical FBI raid at [Mar-a-Lago] is unifying us in ways I haven't seen. In January, we take on the enemy within."
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Using an upside-down flag to protest the search of Mar-a-Lago is particularly interesting for a staunch ally of Trump, considering the former president has cast himself as a protector of the Stars and Stripes.
He's been previously seen theatrically embracing and kissing American flags at events. In November 2016, he tweeted that "there must be consequences" for those who burn the flag, like having their citizenship revoked or spending a year in jail.
With both sides embracing a rotation of the flag in times of frustration, upside-down U.S. flags will require some context clues to determine their message. Whether it's expressing fear that human rights are being stripped away, or expressing distrust in a governmental process, it's safe to assume that some form of distress is involved.
