"Why are you wearing that flag here?", a confused young man asked about my choice of capes last Saturday at the peace rally in Philadelphia. Since the crowd was basically left, lefter, and far left they seemed only to associate the Gadsden flag with neocon TEA Partiers. So why was this antiwar libertarian wearing it?

The Gadsden flag represents the will to resist tyranny. "Don’t Tread on Me" is about standing up for human rights, not going around the world trampling them. When the Founders raised that flag they did it fighting the mightiest empire of their era. Today, we raise it resisting the American empire, the mightiest in all history. Those who would raise the Gadsden flag while advocating aggressive wars overseas dishonor the memory of the Founders. It’s past time for freedom lovers to reclaim this symbol of liberty!

The fact that the Gadsden flag is mostly in the colors of Agorism, yellow and black, only adds to its the appeal.

The rally happened on Saturday, October 16, 2010. We started at City Hall. The rally moved down Market Street and stopped in front of the South Eastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) headquarters. There, a speech was given calling for more funding for public transportation. Myself and the two other libertarians in attendance, Henry Whitney and Nicole Prosser, quietly moved down the street not wishing to participate in this part of the rally. The march ended at the National Constitution Center where more moving speeches were given and a rapper sang.

Enjoy the video and pictures of the rally below: