The North American Vexillological Association (NAVA) is a membership organization devoted to vexillology, the study of flags. It was founded in 1967 by American vexillologist Whitney Smith (1940–2016), and others. Its membership of 1,000+ comprises flag scholars, enthusiasts, designers, collectors, conservators, educators, merchants, manufacturers, historians, and hobbyists.
In the 21st century, many state and municipal bodies have introduced measures to change their flags, citing criticism by NAVA of its old design and using guidelines created by NAVA to design their new flag proposals.[1]
History
The Flag of New Hampshire is an example of the "seal on a bedsheet" design that NAVA considers a poor design. As of 2024, half of US states adhere to this design in some capacity.
The North American Vexillological Association was formed in 1967 by Whitney Smith. Smith, a political science student at Harvard University had a passion for flag design at an early age. Prior to NAVA's founding, Smith worked with Guyanese President Cheddi Jagan to design Guyana's new flag in the early 1960s.[2] Since its founding, the association has met annually across the United States and Canada to present and discuss research, share their passion for flags, and to honor vexillological achievement. Smith, in his capacity as president, assisted numerous governments on designing their flags including the flags of Aruba, Bonaire, and the Saudi Arabian Navy.[3] In 1969, it became a charter member of the International Federation of Vexillological Associations.[4]
In 2001, NAVA published a survey ranking all 72 flags of the states and territories of the United States and all the provinces and territories of Canada. The survey criticized the overrepresentation of flags that shared the same design pattern where the state seal is superimposed on a monochrome background, commonly white or blue. The survey concluded that New Mexico had the best-designed flag of any U.S. state and the best overall while Quebec scored highest among Canadian provinces and third overall behind New Mexico and Texas, respectively. Georgia's state flag at that time was rated the worst U.S. flag and worst flag overall while Manitoba's flag was the worst rated Canadian flag.[5] NAVA followed up its 2001 survey of state flags with a survey of city flags in 2004. The flag of Washington D.C. came in first place while the flag of Pocatello, Idaho was ranked as the worst.[6] American podcaster Roman Mars called the flag of Pocatello the worst flag in North America and the flag frequently features on lists of the worst designs of all time.[7] In 2022, NAVA published a survey assessing redesigned city flags that 312 cities had introduced since 2015. In this survey, the flag of Tulsa was ranked as the best redesign while the flag of Ranger, Texas was ranked the worst. Pocatello, who changed their flag in 2017, came in as the 11th best flag among those surveyed.[8]
In 2006, NAVA published its guidebook to flag design, "Good" Flag, "Bad" Flag. The book outlines the organization's approach to flag design including its five basic principles. This includes avoiding the use of letters or seals, using meaningful symbolism, and employing basic colors. A notable guideline from the book's principles is that the flag should be so simple that a child can draw it from memory.[9]
In 2015, NAVA secretary Ted Kaye joined the redesign committee for Fiji to advise the government on a potential redesign of their flag.[10] In 2016, then Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama announced that Fiji was abandoning plans to change the flag after the country won its first ever Olympic gold medal. Celebrations across the country prominently featured the flag and renewed national interest in it.[11]
In 2024, the Manitoba chapter of NAVA released a public survey asking for the opinion of Manitobans on the current flag and if they would support the pursuit of a new provincial flag, signaling the start of an effort by NAVA to change the flag. Manitoba ranked the lowest of all Canadian provinces on NAVA's 2001 flag survey.[12]
Impact
The releases of "Good" Flag, "Bad" Flag and the surveys of state and city flags in the early 2000s lead to increased public interest in their state and municipal flags. This has led to residents in states and cities that are represented by flags that rank poorly with NAVA or are otherwise considered to be bad or offensive designs, to launch efforts to redesign them. NAVA has had considerable influence on the redesigns of flags for cities and states across North America. This impact is evident as numerous design committees have actively incorporated NAVA's guidelines into requirements for submissions, and in some instances, have sought direct consultation with NAVA members throughout the redesign process. According to NAVA themselves, at least 312 cities in the United States have changed their designs since 2015. Two states have changed their flags while four others are in various stages of redesigning their flags as of 2024.
State Flags
Left: The current Flag of Utah showing the "seal on a bedsheet" design. Right: the flag which will become the official state flag in March of 2024.
Since the release of the survey in 2001 and the book in 2006, Mississippi and Georgia have changed their designs while Utah and Minnesota have approved designs to replace their flags in 2024.[13] Rationale for changing these flags cited criticisms of flag design outlined by NAVA with Minnesota state legislator Peter Fischer, who established the committee to study a change to the state's flag and seal, directly citing the five principals of flag design.[14] In addition to general design criticisms, the flags of Mississippi, Georgia, and Minnesota faced further criticism as Mississippi and Georgia's flags invoked Confederate imagery while Minnesota's depicted a white settler displacing a Native American in a negationist manner.[15] Three other states are in various stages of the redesign process. An effort to change the state flag of Massachusetts is currently being studied by the state legislature.[16] In 2023, Illinois Governor J. B. Pritzker signed a bill to study a replacement for their state flag.[17]Maine will hold a referendum in 2024 to replace their current flag with a previous design.[18] Not all state flag redesign efforts have been successful. In 2009 NAVA worked alongside The Oregonian to launch a public effort to change the flag of Oregon. Despite a strong public response, both groups failed to find a lawmaker to take up the redesign proposal in the state's 2009 legislative session.[19]
City Flags
In 2015, American radio host and podcaster Roman Mars cited NAVA's five principles in a Ted Talk criticizing the designs of local and state flags. Influenced by the video, Miro Weinberger, mayor of Burlington, Vermont, launched an effort in early 2017 to change the city flag, instructing the city's arts department to replace it within the year. Ted Kaye was consulted by the city to provide expertise on the matter and was directly involved in the process. Part of the redesign process required individuals involved to read both "Good" Flag, "Bad" Flag and watch the Roman Mars video. A new flag was approved by the city council in November and unveiled in December.[20] Gabriel Bird, a local dentist in Norman, Oklahoma, launched an effort to re-design his city's flag in 2016 after learning about both Mars' criticisms of city flags and reading NAVA's five principles. Norman adopted its new flag in 2020 after a citizen led committee reviewed over one hundred designs and allowed residents to vote on the five finalists in an online poll.[21] In addition to Burlington and Norman, more than 300 cities across the U.S. have changed their flag designs since the release of the Youtube video. In 2022, NAVA counted at least 312 cities that had changed their flags since 2015 but speculated that the number was probably much higher. The author of "Good" Flag, "Bad" Flag, Ted Kaye, has consulted artists, citizens, and officials on designing new flags for cities.[22]
Criticism
Political and cultural commentator JJ McCullough has criticized the criteria employed by NAVA for flag design, arguing that the standards lack a solid scientific foundation and, in turn, inhibit the creative expressions that artists can incorporate into their flag submissions. McCullough characterizes this as a "rather striking conformity on American flag culture." Notably, all 20 finalists for Utah's flag adhered to NAVA's guidelines, yet many of them faced criticism from the public and lawmakers. Representative Andrew Stoddard, for instance, expressed concern that one of the finalists bore too much of a resemblance to the logo of Delta Airlines.[23]
Minnesota's new state flag has also been met with criticism. McCullough contended that it bears a striking resemblance to the flag of Cedar Rapids while some right-wing commentators have said it bears a resemblance to the national flag of Somalia and the state of Puntland.[24] McCullough asserts that the "unpredictable, stylistic wackiness that once characterized flags of American cities is now gradually being eroded in favor of predictable geometric flags featuring stylized representations of rivers, mountains, and stars." The shift, as McCullough sees it, signifies a departure from the vibrant diversity that once defined American city flags, replacing it with a more standardized and conventional design approach that then violates the principle outlined by NAVA that stresses that flag designs must be unique and leads to flags that appear similar to those of other locations.[25]
Annual meetings
Since 1967, the association has held annual meetings across the United States and Canada for all those interested in flags to present and discuss research, share their passion for flags, and to honor vexillological achievement. Since 1977, it has marked each meeting with a distinctive flag.
NAVA honors achievement in the field with several honors and awards:
Captain William Driver Award: presented to the individual who presents the best paper at the association's annual meeting
The Vexillonnaire Award: recognizing a flag scholar who becomes personally involved in a significant and successful act of creating, changing, or improving flag design, or promoting good flag usage or altering it for the better
Kevin Harrington Award: presented to the individual who authors the best article to appear in a non-vexillological publication during the preceding year
John Purcell Award: presented to an individual for an exemplary contribution that promotes public understanding of vexillology in North America
Doreen Braverman Award: presented to an organizational member who supports the association's mission by making a significant contribution to the vexillological community
Whitney Smith Fellow: an individual who makes an outstanding contribution to North Americanvexillology may be elected to this honor by NAVA's executive board. An honoree is entitled to use the postnominals "WSF"
Honorary membership: honors an individual who renders distinguished service to the association or vexillology[26]
Publications
In addition to "Good" Flag, "Bad" Flag and its surveys, NAVA publishes Raven: A Journal of Vexillology, an annual peer-reviewed journal and Vexillum, a quarterly magazine (combining the previous Flag Research Quarterly and NAVA News). They cover vexillological topics and inter-disciplinary discussion as well as the Association's proceedings and other vexillological news.[27] NAVA also maintains an archive of case studies of their involvement in the redesign process of flags for cities and states across North America.[28]
