America’s Symbols Belong to All Americans
The flags of the United States mark the country’s imperfect path.
Probably didn’t happen like this.
Photograph: Hulton Archive
The Betsy Ross flag — 13 red and white stripes, 13 stars — was probably not designed by Betsy Ross. This is worth keeping in mind when it comes to thinking about the 1770s flag at the center of a very modern controversy. Its birth can’t be traced to any one person. It belongs to all Americans.
The Ross flag was drawn into the culture wars with the best of patriotic and commercial intentions. Nike created a special sneaker, the Air Max 1 Quick Strike, to celebrate the Fourth of July. The back of the shoe featured an image of the Betsy Ross flag. Colin Kaepernick — former NFL quarterback, activist, Nike spokesperson — told the company that he considered the image to be offensive, as it has been embraced by white supremacists, perhaps because it dates from a time when slavery grotesquely coexisted with the American idea.