Cascadia

Last modified: 2023-10-28 by rick wyatt
Keywords: united states | independence | cascadia | washington | oregon |
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• About Cascadia
• The Doug
• Early Versions
• Eight Stars
• Another Design
• Seven Stars on Green
• Wavy Blue/White Stripes
• Cascadian National Party
• National Flag Proposal
• Cascadia Rainbow Flag
• Cascadia Trans Flag

See also:

• Political Parties and Movements (U.S.)
• Regional Flags
• States of the United States
  
  External sites:
  
• Cascadia National Party
• Cascadia Independence Project

About Cascadia

Cascadia, an area that slops over the Canadian border into British Columbia and beyond in some definitions, has several competing flags.
Jon Radel

The concept of Cascadia has been around for a few years, but only so far as an idea for engendering cross-border co-operation, not as a sovereignist movement.
Kevin O'Grady, 24 November 2000

I have seen some four or five different proposals for a Cascadia flag (each linked to a different concept of Cascadia, at least detail-wise).
Antonio Martins, 26 November 2000

The Doug

I have been meaning to submit my version of a Cascadian flag for several years. It is a simple flag of tree colors (blue, white and green) with a conifer tree in the middle. I came up with it when I was living in Hungary and was homesick for Cascadia in 1994. The blue represents sky and the Pacific. The white represents clouds and snow. The green represent the forest. My first version was posted on my website in 1997. Several years ago I created a yahoo group to explore what Cascadia could be and what it is: Cascadian_Bioregionalism.
Alexander, 8 August 2004

I have written in the past (2004). I am the designer of the Cascadian flag called the Doug. Since talking to you I have changed the Doug to fit closer to the image I had in 1995 in Hungary when I was homesick for my forests in Oregon. I also put the nine dicta (dictum in singular) that I composed for Cascadia in 1997 on the tricolors and put it on my old website entitled "Cascadia Nation" with an earlier version of the Doug flag. The full Cascadian Nine Dicta in context is:
"In all things we do and in all that we consider, may we do them for Ecology, Equality and Equity with Respect, Reverence and Responsibility in all Commons, Communities and Cooperatives"

Over the last year the flag has become even more popular. It is now associated with the regional soccer games known as the Cascadia Cup. The Timbers Army (the fan club of the Portland Timbers soccer team) fly the flag at all games and at one tifo they even pulled out a huge flag to cover the audience (the Timbers Army section at the event) www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbQEMmQ1XNw.

Also the flag is now popular with the local gourmet microbrew community with even beers associated with the Doug flag. Fishtail Brewery labels their beer as the official beer of the "Republic of Cascadia" and Hopworks Urban Brewery now brews a beer called "Secession" with the flag and a political map of Cascadia incorporated into its label.

Several companies now sell the flag especially Oregon City family owned business named smALL FLAGs.

Alexander Baretich, 16 September 2011

Early Versions

image by Alexander Baretich, 8 August 2004

Tumchukilahee Mula Stik polaklie is based on my original Cascadian flag but touched up. Tumchukilahee in Chinook means Cascadia. Mula Stik in Chinook means "fir tree" and polaklie means shadow.

image by Alexander Baretich, 8 August 2004

Tumchukilahee stik sail is the new and more abstract version that Aranyboci has done. Stik in Chinook means "tree" and sail means "flag" or "sail" or "cloth in wind".

The name of the artist is "Aranyboci" and he adds a "description" of Cascadia and the Cascadians as follows

Klahowya ("greetings" in Chinook Jargon the trade language that once marked an unique aspect of Pacific NorthWest life and still remains in place names, can still be found in slang and spoken by the elders in both the First Nations or Native Americans and the peoples that have resettled here within the last hundred years).

Cascadia is geographically the Columbia River Watershed and the area around the Cascade Range. Cascadia's farthest extent is from northern California to the Alaskan Panhandle and from the Pacific to the Continental Divide. Cascadia Minor tends to be the states of Northern California, Oregon and Washington with the province of British Columbia. The Scottish naturalist David Douglas named the Cascade mountain range after the powerful waterfalls that carved out this land and gave it so much biomass.

Cascadia may or may not ever be a nation-state as others have pushed for, but She is a bioregion. Some may ask if this idea is another "breakaway" movement.. well that is really up to Cascadians. The term "Cascadian" can be found back the era of the Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) for the art style in the Pacific NorthWest. This art style of the CCC build was exemplified in monumental structures in the Cascade Ranges like Timberline Lodge that emphasized and blended into the natural surroundings. Cascadian style was characteristically rustic, natural material and massive with themes being focused on Nature local or cultural imagery. The movement to form the state of Jefferson in the mid 20th century may have contributed to the idea of political separation. The Jefferson State movement has been consistently a movement against domineering urban centers. Oregon Govenor Tom McCall in the 1970s was so fed up with southern Californians moving to Oregon and contributing to suburban sprawl said "Come and visit us again and again, But for heaven's sake, don't come here to live." There was even talk of building a wall on the Oregon-Californian border. In the mid 1970s Ernest Callenbach envisioned an emergence of environmental awareness that would lead the Pacific NorthWest (Northern California, Oregon and Washington) to form the country of Ecotopia in his utopian novel of the same name "Ecotopia". The 1990s David McCloskey formed the Cascadia Institute. McCloskey describes Cascadia as "a land of falling water". Cascadia today translated back into Chinook Jargon would be "Tumchuk Ilahee" (literally "waterfall land").

When one places a map of the Columbia River Watershed over a map of the territory where Chinook Jargon was once spoken as the lingua franca there is a surprisingly strange overlap. Chinook Jargon was not just a language used by Native people, but a was a merger between all languages spoken in the region. Today it survives among some of the Native People as well as in the place names of the region and in the slang of the English of the region. Cascadia is not just a physical place, but is a common reverence to Nature as well as a merger between the different cultures that have left their impact on the land. To top this off the same territory has other bonds that unite people culturally and economically such as weather, timber and salmon all these stemming from the confluence of the Pacific Ocean and the Cascade Mountains. These two dominant geographical features play major roles in not just the geology and biodiversity, but also in the mentality of the people that call Cascadia home. The mixture of marine, alpine and even desert climates stirs a profound reverence towards Mother Nature as well as a dark humor that many called Northwest Noir. It is a land where plaid became part of identity as loggers, tree huggers and Grunge rockers. This is a land where mythology still continues in both landscape and story. Where a Sasquatch (Bigfoot) still lurks behind trees or mountains and where the legend of D.B. Copper is still a mystery that does not wish to be silenced. A land where volcanoes are not feared, but revered as sublime violent acts of Mother Earth. Cascadians are varied in background and divided thoughts, but yet hold common beliefs that the forest, mountains and Pacific is part of their bodies. The pitch of the fir, cedar and pine is the same substance that runs in our veins. The moss, soft soil and bark are the skin to our Mother. The smell of the fallen leaves after the first frost intoxicates us. Dark grey clouds give us a motherly comfort. Rain is our brethren in battle against new comers that wish to steal more of our way of life or the land we revere.

Historically a nation is a group of people with common symbolism such as language, culture, religion and etc. that unify them as a group. The group identity called nationalism emerged out of the Industrial Age as a new form of political group identity and as a result has became chauvinistic in many respects to any other form of group identity. Nationalism with all its chauvinism has become yet another stumbling block to finding harmony between people and Nature. As an emerging identity "Cascadian" may evolve into a "nation", but the terms "national" and "nationalism" are limited and chauvinistic in their regards to the Cascadian love for diversity. Cascadian identity could be called regional nationalism or even eco-nationalism. Yet the term of "nationalism" has a legacy of hate and misguided nations. Many of those who look to Nature have taken to a new approach. This new approach to identity through diversity in thinking, in human experience (cultures, histories and commonality) and ecology is bioregionalism. "Bioregions are geographic areas having common characteristics of soil, watershed, climate, native plants and animals ... A bioregion refers to both the geographical terrain and a terrain of consciousness -- to a place and the ideas that have developed about how to live in that place."

 Peter Berg. Out of the shared and merging experiences of the people that have come to be called Cascadian there is a hope of a new synthesis of thoughts and a new reverence of Nature that will be called Cascadia.
Alexander Baretich, 25 October 2004

"Eight Stars"

image by Nick Pharris, 24 February 1998

My proposal for a flag for the Cascadia region of northwest North America.

• The green triangles in the hoist and fly are intended to represent mountains; the two mountains are for the Pacific mountains (including the Cascades) and the Rocky mountains, the two great mountain systems of our region. They also stand for the U.S. and Canada, both of which contain parts of Cascadia. The green color is taken from the flag of Washington.
• The significance of the waves in the base is obvious; they are taken, modified, from the flag of British Columbia--but in their present form they are more reminiscent of the old Estonian SSR flag. The sun is also from the British Columbia flag, yet while there it represents the sun setting on the western edge of the British empire, on the Cascadia flag it is rising from behind the mountains: a symbol of rising regional consciousness.
• Dark blue and gold figure prominently in the flags of Oregon, Idaho, Montana, and Alaska.
• The eight stars represent eight socioeconomic regions of Cascadia (centered on Anchorage, AK; Fairbanks, AK; Vancouver, BC; Seattle, WA; Spokane, WA; Portland, OR; Medford, OR; and Boise, ID), but for simplicity's sake they can also represent Alaska, the Yukon Territory, British Columbia, Washington State, Oregon, Idaho, western Montana, and northwestern California. The eight gold stars on navy are also reminiscent of the seven stars of the Big Dipper plus the North Star, as seen on the flag of Alaska.
• Blue is for loyalty and for the Pacific Ocean, lakes, and rivers.
• Green is for hope and for the forests of the coastal part of the region.
• Gold is for prosperity and for the croplands and deserts of the interior part of the region.
• White is for peace and for the glaciers of the north.

"Another Design"

image by Jorge Candeias, 19 September 2001

This Cascadia flag was actually designed by David McCloskey of Cascadia Institute
Patrick Mazza, 13 January 2004

"Seven Stars on Green"

image by Antonio Martins, 23 November 2000
Actual flag by Karen Rogers

The last time we discussed Cascadia, I described my own idea for a Cascadian flag. Antonio kindly gif'd it for me. As noted at the time, there are several different 'Cascadian' ideas bouncing around, ranging from cross-border cooperation, to the idea of a joint Seattle-Vancouver (B.C.) bid to host the Olympics, to more-or-less serious ideas of secession.

Back then, I noted that I had never seen any of these flags flying 'in the cloth' anywhere in 'Cascadia.' I have to amend that now, because my wife had my Cascadia idea made into a real 3x5' flag. It has flown over my home, and now hangs here in my office.

Andrew S. Rogers, 27 November 2000

Wavy Blue and White Stripes
Republic of Cascadia

resized by Rick Wyatt
from Republic of Cascadia Website

I found this site on Cascadia that has a different flag concept. The symbolism of the elements:

• Waving blue and white stripes: Evokes both the deep blue waters of the Pacific Ocean and Puget Sound as well as the snow capped mountains of the Cascade range
• Field of green: For the lush vegetation of our nation
• Field of Red: For the volcanism and tectonic forces that burn beneath us
• Setting sun: Represents our place at the western edge of the American continent
• Fir cone: Represents rebirth, renewal, and our natural forest resources

Cascadian National Party

image by John Phillip, 17 September 2001

The flag is the official flag of the party, as stated at the party website: http://www.angelfire.com/wa3/cascadia/flag.html.
Tomislav Todorovic, 10 May 2015

image by Tomislav Todorovic, 10 May 2015

There is an alternate flag as well, with blue and white colors reversed and inscription in green.
Tomislav Todorovic, 10 May 2015

National Flag Proposal

image by Tomislav Todorovic, 10 May 2015

The party goal is creation of an independent Cascadia which would combine the present states of Washington and Oregon. According to Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cascadia_%28independence_movement%29#Secessionist_activism it was founded in 2001, but quickly went inactive. The party proposal for the national flag has two gold stars in canton, above a bicolor wavy stripe, green above white, all on blue field. According to the party website: http://www.angelfire.com/wa3/cascadia/flag.html the flag symbolism is as follows:
"The two gold stars represent the states of Oregon and Washington. The top blue background represents freedom. The white flowing stripe represents hope. The green flowing stripe represents the environment and resources of Cascadia. The bottom blue background represents the water of the Pacific Ocean, the Columbia River, and the Puget Sound."
Tomislav Todorovic, 10 May 2015

Cascadia Rainbow Flag

image by Tomislav Todorovic, 10 May 2015

This is the rainbow gay flag with the addition of Douglas fir for Cascadia. It is offered for sale at the Cascadia Independence Project website: http://www.cascadianow.org/products/cascadia-rainbow-doug-flag-nylon

The earliest image of the flag design dates from November 2012: https://www.facebook.com/CascadiaNow/photos/pb.180670228632461.-2207520000.1431277314./493386804027467/?type=3&permPage=1
and its earliest photos, from May 2013, can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/CascadiaNow/photos/pb.180670228632461.-2207520000.1431277225./600136046685875/?type=3&permPage=1
and here: https://www.facebook.com/CascadiaNow/photos/pb.180670228632461.-2207520000.1431277225./600135580019255/?type=3&permPage=1
while the flag making intention was announced in May 2014: https://www.facebook.com/CascadiaNow/photos/pb.180670228632461.-2207520000.1431277162./796120087087469/?type=3&permPage=1
Tomislav Todorovic, 10 May 2015

Cascadia Trans Flag

image by Tomislav Todorovic, 9 May 2020

The Cascadia Trans Flag is the Monica Helms transgender flag with the addition of Douglas fir for Cascadia. It is offered for online sale by the Cascadian Department of Bioregional Affairs:
https://deptofbioregion.org/department-of-bioregion-2/3x5-cascadia-trans-flag
but seems not to be the part of permanent offer, for it is claimed to be offered only for the Trans Day of Visibility (31st March). Consequently, not many copies have been sold so far, which means that the photos of flag in use should also be rare - and they indeed are: the only currently known example:
https://www.reddit.com/r/vexillology/comments/hlzu75/trans_cascadia_spotted_in_seattle/ was taken in Seattle in July 2020.
Tomislav Todorovic, 9 May 2020