The Story Behind Minnesota’s New State Flag

Mississippi, Utah, and now Minnesota. In the last few years, all three states have taken a hard look at their state flags and realized it was finally time for a change. I had the chance to see Minnesota’s flag journey up close while attending the 2024 North American Vexillological Association (NAVA) conference in St. Paul, the perfect backdrop to dive into the story of Minnesota’s new state flag.

Now...Minnesota’s old flag? Let’s just say it was...one of the worst. It was one of those seal-on-a-blue-sheet designs — over 20 states have them — but Minnesota’s old flag had an even bigger issue. The state seal featured racist imagery towards the indigenous population. 

At the NAVA conference, which is basically a gathering of flag nerds (yes, we exist in the tens!), I was lucky enough to speak with some of the key players behind Minnesota’s flag redesign. These were the folks who advocated for a new flag, drafted potential designs, and championed the process. I even got to meet up with Andrew Prekker, the designer of the design that became the final flag. They all told me about the grassroots push to reimagine a flag that could better represent all Minnesotans, without outdated and offensive symbols, going as far back as 1989.

The New Design: A Flag for All Minnesotans

The new flag design is a complete departure from the old seal-based flag.

First, it features an abstract shape of the state of Minnesota along the hoist edge in dark blue, boldly grounding the flag’s identity. A prominent eight-pointed star sits within this shape, representing the many things including the state's motto "L'etoile du Nord" or "North Star", as well as  being a historic symbol for the indigenous population. It also helps that the eight pointed star is the central feature inside the rotunda of the state capitol. The rest of the flag is a beautiful bright blue field, evoking the many lakes that Minnesota is famous for. These design choices not only give the flag a fresh, modern look but also make it far more recognizable and meaningful for the people of the state.

If you’ve been following state flag redesigns like I have, you know how significant this shift is. And it’s exciting to see a state take this step forward, joining others in creating flags that people can genuinely feel proud of. As a lover of good flag design (and one who avoids selling poorly designed ones), I can definitely say this new Minnesota flag, as well as a lot of the flags in the contest, are very worthy of being sold on FlagsForGood.com!