Rebellious Stripes: The American Flag in Activist Art, 1960–2025

The American flag originated as an act of protest. That status intensified in the second half of the twentieth century, as protest movements have used and manipulated the flag in provocative ways. Activists and artists have continued to mobilize the flag in pursuit of a variety of objectives, prompting intense public and legal debates about what the flag is (materially), what it represents (symbolically), and how it can or should be used. Rebellious Stripes: The American Flag in Activist Art, 1960-2025 explores the use of the American flag in activist artworks focused on political figures, racial equality, anti-imperialism, and social and economic justice. It draws primarily from the UWM Art Collection, with additions from the UWM Libraries’ Special Collections and Archives, and two Universities of Wisconsin faculty-artists. Collectively, the objects in Rebellious Stripes demonstrate the ongoing battle for control of the American flag as people across the political spectrum employ it to signal a range of messages beyond ‘patriotism.