"The history of HIV and AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) in the USA began in 1981, when the United States of America became the first country to officially recognize a strange new illness among a small number of gay men. Today, it is generally accepted that the origin of AIDS probably lies in Africa. However, the USA was the first country to bring AIDS into the public consciousness and the American reaction undoubtedly contributed to the establishment of AIDS as one of the most politicized, feared and controversial diseases in the history of modern medicine."

The District of Columbia Statehood Movement was a political movement that advocated making the District of Columbia a state which dates back to the 1970s. Statehood would give the citizens of Washington, DC, full representation in the United States Congress and full control over their own local affairs, which they don't enjoy at this time. Unfortunately, there is very little political support in Congress for the proposal and since 2003 the proposal seems mostly abandoned.

This flag began as a police mourning arm band used in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, area and was at first typically worn when an officer was killed in the line of duty. It stood for the "thin blue line" of police protection. It evolved into an auto sticker and finally into a flag. It was also used as a show of respect for the police officers killed on September 11 and was also seen as a variant with a red stripe instead of a blue one for fire fighters.

Fire and Police Support Flag		Police and Fire Support Flag

Versions with much thinner blue or red stripes have also been reported. A tri-color variant with the text "Police Lives Matter" and was used in 2015 at a rally in Baltimore, Ohio.

These defaced American flags were a part of a protest sponsored by the radical Adbusters Media Foundation against their perceived take-over of the American government and society by multi-national corporations. They described themselves as: "a global network of culture jammers and creatives working to change the way information flows, the way corporations wield power, and the way meaning is produced in our society."

The Black American Flag was proposed in 2003 as a flag which would better represent the whole population of African Americans, or Black Americans, as they are consistently called on the flag designers website. According to them the black color symbolizes all the hardships that Black Americans have endured in the past, as well as the hope for their unity in the efforts for creating a better future. The white star is said to represent the North Star, which "was used as a guide for the long journey towards freedom"; this probably refers to the fact that runaway slaves went north to get hoped for freedom, as well as to the later migrations to the northern parts of the United States after the abolition of slavery, where the discrimination was much less pronounced. As an extrapolation of this, the North Star is also seen as the "guide into the future," for those still seeking a better life.

This version of an Earth Flag has been in use by an environmental advocacy and activist group called the Knights of Gaia since 2004. The flag is based on James Cadle's "Flag of Earth," first proposed in 1969.

The Honor and Remember organization and flag began in Norfolk, Virginia, as a way to honor and remember George Anthony (Tony) Lutz who was killed by a sniper's bullet while he was on patrol in Fallujah, Iraq, on December 29, 2005. What began as a family's grief coping mechanism has resulted in the founding of Honor and Remember, Inc., an organization whose primary goal is to honor the memory, and give a visible public reminder, of men and women who have given their lives in the service of their country. More importantly, to serve as a way to remember them each individually by name.

This 51-star version of the United States flag is commonly used by the Puerto Rican Statehood Movement (Movimiento Estadista Puertorriqueño). Although, it has been popular among the island's statehood supporters for years, a basic question for most Puerto Ricans remains as to whether Puerto Rico should remain a U.S. territory, become a U.S. state, or become an independent country, and on this they disagree.

Since Hawaii became part of the United States there have been several local groups or movements whose goals were independence for Hawaii. The Nation of Hawai'i is a pro-independence group of people who claim descent from the original inhabitants of the islands. They use a white-yellow-black horizontal tricolored flag with a "Kahili" symbol in the middle yellow band. The Ka Lahui Hawai, also known as the Polynesian Sovereignty Movement, are another group desiring independence who use a flag with a white constellation of stars placed on a dark blue field.

Hawai'i Ko Aloha Flag 2004

A third group, known as Hawai'i Ko Aloha claim to represent all the lineal descendants of Hawaiians from Maka'ainana to Alii. The colors of the background of their Flag represent the Nine islands of the inhabited Hawaiian chain prior to the arrival of the western exploiters. The saying Hawaii ko Aloha means "Love of our land of Hawaii."

Reformers since the early 1990s have been trying to get congressional term limits approved. In the elections of 1994, part of the Republican platform was to pass legislation setting term limits in Congress. They proposed a constitutional amendment to limit members of the Senate to two six-year terms and members of the House to six two-year terms. However, since constitutional amendments require a two-thirds majority, it failed.

Although this flag isn't historical in the sense that it ever waved during the American Revolution, some contemporary flag companies are today selling a version of the "Join or Die" flag. There is no historical documentation to support this flag's existence, but this flag was used in the opening titles and credits of the somewhat inaccurate seven-part historical HBO melodrama "John Adams," released in the 2008, and based on the Pulitzer prize-winning book of the same name by David McCullough.

The Tea Party movement is a conservative political movement in the United States that grew throughout 2009 into a series of locally and nationally coordinated protests. The Tea Party protests were a series of protests across the United States that focuses on smaller government, fiscal responsibility, individual freedoms and upholding a conservative view of the Constitution. The protests were partially in response to several Federal laws: the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, and a series of healthcare reform bills. The name "Tea Party" refers to the Boston Tea Party of 1773 when American colonists destroyed British tea rather than paying what they considered a tax that violated their right to "No Taxation without Representation." In the 2010 Congressional elections, it became a recognized faction of the Republican political party, and successfully ran several conservative Congressional candidates under its name.

Culpeper Minute Men Flag 1775		Gonzales "Come and Take It" flag 1835

Several Tea Party flags have been reported being seen at Tea Party Rallies; one a modified "Betsy Ross" flags with a Roman Numeral II placed in the center of the 13-Star pattern representing the "Second American Revolution," another, less seen, but reported was a variant slightly renascent of a Confederate States of America flag. Reportedly, in Texas, the Tea Party likes the Gonzales "Come and Take It" flag. The flag most popular, however, hands down, is the modern replica of the Gadsden Flag showing a coiled rattle-snake with 13 rattles on a yellow background with the black lettered motto "Don't Thread On Me," although the Culpeper Minute Men Flag has also been seen. Snakes? Anyone?

The Nyberg flag, named after right-wing activist Gail Nyberg, who apparently designed it, is being sold at the "Sipsey Street Irregulars" website. Based on the belief that during the American Revolution, the active forces in the field against the King's tyranny never amounted to more than 3% of the colonists, militia groups calling themselves by such names as the "Three Percenters," (Threepers), the "Sipsey Street Irregulars", and the "Oath Keepers" (led by Nevada lawyer Stewart Rhodes, a former staffer of Congressman Ron Paul), have sprung up expressing the belief that any attempt at gun control is unconstitutional and violating their second amendment rights. These groups claim to be the new three-percenters who "the Founders counted on to save the Republic when everyone else abandoned it."

These extreme "anti-gun control" (or "pro-second amendment") gun owners, claim to be preparing to "defend" themselves and "their right to bare [sic] arms" against perceived "enemies, foreign and domestic," and who warn all those they call "collectivists" (those who favor gun control "control"), to leave them and their guns alone. The Southern Poverty Law Center and the Anti-Defamation League have labeled these groups as anti-government, extremists, and racists.

The Oath Keepers, founded on March 2009 by Stewart Rhodes (a Yale Law graduate and former US Army paratrooper) were incorporated in Las Vegas as a non-profit corporation. They advocate their members disobey any orders that they are given if they believe they violate the Constitution of the United States. Supposably made up of present and former servicemen, police, and firefighters, the Oath Keepers include chapters in many states across America. Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) has reportedly been seen sporting an Oath Keepers patch.

III Percent Patriots Resist Flag		III Percent Patriots Chaplain Corps

An apparent very militia-like splinter group calling themselves the III Percent Patriots, led by someone using the alias of Kerodin III, has broken away from the main body of the Three Percenters and established websites where he claims to be attempting create an "official III Organization." He say this about their flag: "This is my Battle Flag. Tremble, Enemies of Liberty. For if I fall and take it to the bloody mud - one of my brothers will pick it up and kill you for me." He says his Battle flag´s stripes are from the Sons of Liberty flag, and the III represents "...every American...who has picked up a rifle, or would pick up a rifle, for Rightful Liberty." Thus far these groups have not been involved in violent activities, other than spending a great deal of time and money arming and outfitting themselves.

A related gun control protest flag is a modern twist to the Texan Gonzales Banner of 1835 which replaces the Texas cannon with a modern M-16 military semi-automatic rifle. Although this flag isn't affiliated with any particular gun control group, it seemed to fit here.

A "Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear" took place on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. on Oct 30, 2010. Billed as an "anti-extremism" gathering, it was hosted by Jon Stewart (of Comedy Central´s "The Daily Show") and Stephen Colbert (of Comedy Central´s "The Colbert Report"). A huge crowd attended, and apparently it received mixed reviews, not enough content and too much clowning around for some people, others loved it.

United States voter dissatisfaction with the apparent inability of the politicians in Washington D.C. to work together birthed a "In the Fall, Fire Them All" ground swell that resulted in many people voting against all incumbents regardless of their political views in the 2010 Congressional Elections. This seriously harmed the Democratic majority and cost them control of Congress.

The recent attempt to legalize marijuana in California brought a whole new set of flags to wave. Interestingly enough the growers themselves helped defeat the proposition on the election ballot. Ah, capitalism...

Legalize Marijuana Flag (Type #3)		Legalize Marijuana Flag (Type #4)		Legalize Marijuana Flag (Type #5)

A whole rash of flags appeared on the market, supporting the legalization of marijuana and the use of "medical" marijuana. These are a few examples. Type #1 - places marijuana leaves on the stripes and canton; Type #2 - tries to mix conservation, recycling and marijuana use; Type #3 - plays a word game using the popular iPod as a ploy; Type #4 - features a marijuana leaf and the word "blunt," slang for a tobacco leaf that is often used to roll marijuana cigars. They come in flavors such as cherry and peach and are used to camouflage the potent smell of pot. Type #5 - centers a leaf and the word "Marijuana" on a horizontal red-yellow-green tricolor.

One of the newest Legalize Marijuana Flags is the Marijuana "Come and Get It"flag, a modern twist to the Texan Gonzales Banner of 1835 which replaces the Texas cannon with a lit Marijuana joint and adds a black Marijuana leaf above it. After seeing this historic Texas Revolution flag with AR-15 automatic rifles and such, this re-purposing of its design should not surprise us anymore.

The COEXIST Movement has sprung up, especially on college campuses, across the country. The goal of this movement is to embrace tolerance for all belief systems. The chief promoter of this movement is the music industry and the pop icon Bono from the band U2. Hollywood and the fashion industry also promotes this movement with an array of clothing products, gear and bumper stickers, including a flag. Not surprisingly, this is not a popular movement with most fundamentalist groups or churches.