Flag of Columbus, Ohio: Difference between revisions

| Image = Flag of Columbus, flagOhio.jpgsvg

A redesign of the flag began in 2020. During the [[George Floyd protests in Columbus, Ohio|George Floyd protests]], city mayor [[Andrew Ginther]] requested changes to the flag to due to its use of imagery related to [[Christopher Columbus]].

The [[chrome yellow]], white, and [[Scarlet (color)|scarlet red]] triband (officially a 1:2:1 proportion, but is often made a 1:2.3:1 proportion to fit the seal) is a reference to [[Crown of Aragon|Spain]], who funded Christopher Columbus' [[Voyages of Christopher Columbus|expeditions to the Americas]]. Columbus, the namesake of the city, is also referenced near the center of the seal, where a ship of his fleet is depicted. The ship is completely enclosed in a circular yellow border. Surrounding this is a shield modeled on the design of the [[Flag of the United States]], with 13 red and white stripes and 12 white stars (6 on either side of the ship design) on a dark blue background.<ref name="acf"/> The city flag's dimensions of 10:19 are also related to the United States flag. Instead of directly stating the proportions, the [[Local ordinance|municipal code]] of Columbus mandates that the flag be of the same proportions of the United States flag,<ref name="flagcode">{{cite web |title=105.021 – City of Columbus Flag |url=https://library.municode.com/oh/columbus/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=TIT1ADCO_CH105STIN_105.021CICOFL |author= Government of [[Columbus, Ohio]]|website=[[Municipal Code Corporation|Municode]] |access-date=May 8, 2020}}</ref> which was specified to be 20 by 38 (often simplified to 10 by 19) in a 1959 [[executive order]] following the [[Hawaii Admission Act|admission of Hawaii to the Union]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Executive Order 10834—The flag of the United States |url=https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/codification/executive-order/10834.html |website=[[National Archives and Records Administration|National Archives]] |access-date=May 8, 2020}}</ref> Perched on top of the shield is an [[eagle]] with outstretched wings, yet another example of American symbolism. Behind the eagle is the dome of the [[Ohio State Capitol]] building, denoting Columbus' importance as Ohio's [[List of capitals in the United States|capital city]]. Just above the dome is the text "Columbus, Ohio" in yellow [[Blackletter|old English]] font. Encircling all the seal's elements mentioned above are 16 yellow [[five-pointed star]]s and a half-[[wreath]] of [[Aesculus glabra|buckeye]] leaves. The eagle is grasping onto a single yellow star, which, with the additional 16 stars, represents Ohio as the [[List of U.S. states by date of admission to the Union|seventeenth state to join the Union]]. The buckeye leaves are another representation of Ohio, as it is the [[List of U.S. state and territory trees|state tree]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Symbols of Ohio |url=https://www.ohiosos.gov/profile-ohio/things/symbols-of-ohio/ |website=[[Ohio Secretary of State]]|date=June 12, 2018 |access-date=June 22, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=105.02 – City coat of arms and corporate seal. |url=https://library.municode.com/oh/columbus/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=TIT1ADCO_CH105STIN_105.02CICOARCOSE |author=Government of [[Columbus, Ohio]]|website=[[Municipal Code Corporation|Municode]] |access-date=May 8, 2020}}</ref> The seal, adopted in 1912, originally did not contain the blue field. On December 9, 1958, the entire emblem was adopted as the city's seal. Originally, it was only regarded as the coat of arms. The official description of the seal allows for some [[artistic interpretation]], and thus different versions of it have been designed.<ref name="acf">{{cite journal |last1=Purcell |first1=John M. |title=Columbus, Ohio |pages=86–88 |url=http://nava.org/digital-library/raven/Raven_v09-10_2002-2003_p057-108_C-E.pdf#page=30|doi=10.5840/raven2002/20039/1037|doi-access=free|journal=Raven: A Journal of Vexillology|date=2002–2003|volume=9|issue=American City Flags |access-date=May 8, 2020}}</ref>

The flag's design has been criticized for its celebration of Christopher Columbus, a controversial figure due to [[Christopher Columbus#Violence towards Natives and Spanish colonistsBrutality|his violent tendencies]] towards natives and colonizers<ref name="iscolumbusready"/> and for his involvement in the [[Atlantic slave trade]].<ref name="tstmcol">{{cite journal |last1=Tinker |first1=George E. |last2=Freeland |first2=Mark |title=Thief, Slave Trader, Murderer: Christopher Columbus and Caribbean Population Decline |journal=[[Wíčazo Ša Review]] |date=Spring 2008 |volume=23 |issue=1 |pages=25–50 |url=https://muse.jhu.edu/article/235622 |access-date=June 18, 2020|doi=10.1353/wic.2008.0002}}</ref> The city has been removing [[Columbus, Ohio#Italian-American community and symbols|its references to the explorer]]; following the 2020 George Floyd protests, the city also announced it was looking into changing the city seal and flag, removing its reference to Christopher Columbus.<ref name="wosu">{{cite news |last1=Pfleger |first1=Paige |last2=Rosenberg |first2=Gabe |title=Columbus To Remove Christopher Columbus Statue At City Hall |url=https://radio.wosu.org/post/columbus-remove-christopher-columbus-statue-city-hall#stream/0 |access-date=June 22, 2020 |work=[[WOSU-FM]] |date=June 18, 2020}}</ref>

Kenneth Huff, a writer from the [[North American Vexillological Association]] (NAVA), traveled to Columbus in 1974 to take pictures of the city's flag. Under the impression that the 1929 version of the flag was the one used, he was bewildered to find a red, white, and blue colored flag. He contacted the [[city clerk]]'s office, who conducted an investigation as to how the flag became the [[de facto]] flag of the city. No conclusive reasoning was found. A flag designed by a [[Columbus Police Department]] officer<ref name="dispatch"/> that followed the 1929 ordinance was presented to the city council in April 1976, at least 10 years after the incorrect flag was first flown.<ref name="flagwaver">{{cite journal |title=The Flag of Columbus, Ohio |journal=Flagwaver: The Journal of [[Great Waters Association of Vexillology]] |date=December 1998 |volume=3 No. 2 |issue=6 |url=http://gwav.tripod.com/issue_6.htm |access-date=May 11, 2020}}</ref> For the [[United States Bicentennial]] in 1976, this design was reinstated with stripe proportions of 1:1.4:1. The current flag proportions of 1:2:1 were adopted around 1985, to fit the seal more comfortably.<ref name="flagwaver"/> Also around the time of flag adoption, a new description of the seal gave it a blue field.<ref name="acf"/> In a 2004 NAVA survey of 150 American city flags, the Columbus flag ranked 72nd, or 3rd of five Ohio flags (the flags of [[Flag of Cleveland|Cleveland]] and [[Flag of Cincinnati|Cincinnati]] are higher).<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Kaye|first1=Edward B.|title=2004 American City Flags Survey|url=https://nava.org/digital-library/design/surveys/2004-American-City%20Flags-Survey.pdf|doi=10.5840/raven2005122|doi-access=free|date=2005|volume=12|journal=Raven: A Journal of Vexillology|pages=27–61 [58–59]|access-date=May 9, 2020|archive-date=August 9, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170809135844/http://nava.org/digital-library/design/surveys/2004-American-City%20Flags-Survey.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>