GRAND RAPIDS — As Itasca County Board Chair Cory Smith put it, you’d have to be living under a rock to not know that some Minnesota communities are choosing to fly the previous state flag.
“So, with that, I brought it here for, No. 1, you the people to tell us how you feel,” he said at the Board meeting Tuesday, May 5.
In the three years since Minnesota adopted the new flag, some local governments — including Crosslake and Babbitt — voted to continue to fly the former flag. Several cities have more recently made the move, like Wadena. Most in the recent wave have been in the Twin Cities suburbs and exurbs.
The Cohasset City Council plans to vote on flying the old flag at its meeting Monday.
Smith said the County Board will give people a few more weeks to voice their thoughts, with plans to decide on May 19.
At Tuesday’s meeting, a dozen people spoke in favor of flying the old flag, largely echoing criticisms of the new flag that arose when it was first introduced. Critics said it reminds them of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor trifecta from the last legislative session, it represents Somalia (because of its purported resemblance to flags there) and it was adopted without a public vote.
“To me as a taxpayer, the current or new flag represents fraud, corruption, socialism and unfunded state mandates,” said Dave Larson of Cohasset.
One person expressed dismay that the county was again rehashing the flag issue.
All the commissioners said they’d already gotten a lot of feedback from constituents. John Johnson, who represents southeastern Itasca, said it’s been a mix of support and opposition to the new flag. Terry Snyder, who represents northwestern Grand Rapids and the Highway 38 corridor, said he’s only heard from people who want the county to fly the old flag.
While no commissioner explicitly said whether they were for or against the new flag, several seemed to lean toward flying the old one.
“I’m glad you’re [Smith] doing the right thing here and extending it out a few weeks. Let people get up, talk and keep talking about it, because it’s the only way it’s going to get resolved for our county,” said Casey Venema, who represents the northeastern part of the county. “Maybe we lead the way, maybe we don’t. I don’t know. But I think it’s up to the people. Let us know.”
The new Minnesota flag officially began flying three years ago on Monday, Minnesota Statehood Day.
The change was driven by concerns with how the previous flag depicted Native Americans and a desire for a simpler design.
The flag quickly became a cultural issue, with opposing viewpoints largely falling along party lines.
Why is Itasca talking about it now?
Itasca County flies the new Minnesota state flag outside the county government center. Only the U.S. flag sits in the Board’s meeting room.
Addie Best first brought the issue to the Board on April 28, requesting the county fly the old flag. Best is the chair of the Itasca County Republicans, though she has not identified herself as such when addressing the Board.
“We were told a lot of things that just weren’t true, but I’m not here to debate the politically motivated redesign,” Best said. “I’m here because Minnesota law does not require counties to fly only the new flag.”
Minnesota Statute about the flag only directs it to be flown over the Capitol between sunrise and sunset.
A state commission spent four months working toward selecting a new flag and state seal. The final design was adapted from a submission from 24-year-old Andrew Prekker of Luverne.
Best presented two different resolutions about flying the previous flag to the Board. One directs the display of the previous flag as a “historic banner for ceremonial and historic purposes” for Minnesota Statehood Day, May 11, and to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary.
“I respectfully ask you to pass one of these resolutions today,” Best said, “and let’s honor our veterans and our heritage while rejecting further financial harm from this bully legislative mandate that has passed unfunded costs on to our rural counties.”
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