Protest flag hung upside down on El Capitan Yosemite

Some of the conservative old crustys on the FB Big Wall Forum are all spicy about it. There’s quite the rager happening over there. Claiming it’s “defacement.” LOL

YAY for the flag holders!!!

Cheers to the underground! Stay sassy 

The thread title is wrong. A protest flag was not hung upside down, the American flag was hung upside down in protest.

Better than the last one that was hung up there. Support our rangers!

Max R wrote:

Some of the conservative old crustys on the FB Big Wall Forum are all spicy about it. There’s quite the rager happening over there. Claiming it’s “defacement.” LOL

This old crusty El Cap vet is totally fine with it.  Let Trump and Elon try to take it down.

An upside down American flag is a signal of distress. Seems very fitting given the current state of affairs. 

I am very surprised that this issue is not one of the more prolific topics on MP right now... The issue at hand being the gutting of some NPS employees and what it means for the parks we climb in. 

Anecdotally, the NPS already seemed like an agency that was stretched thin. One of the wack things: people are getting an email from some random .gov address telling them to summarize what they did that week, and that a lack of response will be considered resignation. But then there's immediate supervisors that know nothing about who that email came from, etc. That is actually happening to several federal agencies. 

But back to the ramifications of our beloved climbing destinations... I don't really know what this means for us as a user group. But it doesn't feel like a good thing. I think preservation of these natural spaces is a critical initiative, and that protecting/managing these places is a good use of my tax dollars. 

I don’t disagree with the message here but will say this is a horrifying trend of people hijacking el cap’s beauty to push a message. If you’re ok with this, then that means you better be ok with the other side of the aisle doing the same thing with whatever message you hate the most. You’re just not able to say “my message is specifically ok because xyz but no one else’s” that’s just not realistic or how it works. If you wouldn’t be ok with a 50ft banner with a pro life message hung across half dome then this should bother you. 

take take take take wrote:

I don’t disagree with the message here but will say this is a horrifying trend of people hijacking el cap’s beauty to push a message. If you’re ok with this, then that means you better be ok with the other side of the aisle doing the same thing with whatever message you hate the most. You’re just not able to say “my message is specifically ok because xyz but no one else’s” that’s just not realistic or how it works. If you wouldn’t be ok with a 50ft banner with a pro life message hung across half dome then this should bother you. 

I can understand this reaction. And my first take was the same. And I recognize that false equivalence fallacies are hardly black and white.

But I think if I’m ok with this I have to be ok with a protest AT a Planned Parenthood or other women’s health clinic. Or with protesters blocking a logging road leading to an active clear cut. 

This is a protest at a place being directly sabotaged by the actions being protested.

When they flew a Palestinian flag last year I opposed that despite calling whats happened in Gaza a genocide and being as critical of the Israeli government as anyone. This isn’t the same thing. But it does set a dangerous precedent since others will come to the same conclusion you have. And like I said, this is my opinion and it isn’t black and white.

Also does anyone know who actually placed the flag? I saw one report it was laid off YOSAR and other backcountry rangers. And one report it was unaffiliated climbers. I dont have social media to go look at the posts firsthand. 

take take take take wrote:

I don’t disagree with the message here but will say this is a horrifying trend of people hijacking el cap’s beauty to push a message. If you’re ok with this, then that means you better be ok with the other side of the aisle doing the same thing with whatever message you hate the most. You’re just not able to say “my message is specifically ok because xyz but no one else’s” that’s just not realistic or how it works. If you wouldn’t be ok with a 50ft banner with a pro life message hung across half dome then this should bother you. 

The flag was there for only a little while and was taken down in time for the people taking pictures at particular time, I gather there is some special moment where the light is just right to get a nice picture, to get their pictures without the flag. 

Yea hey sorry again I agree with the premise but I just know beyond a shadow of a doubt that’s not how it works. While that is a rational line of thought it’s not going to stop the next group of displaying the next urgent message after seeing how viral these photos go. This is the 3rd “political” message on el cap in the last year and to think it stops after this is delusional. 

take take take take wrote:

Yea hey sorry again I agree with the premise but I just know beyond a shadow of a doubt that’s not how it works. While that is a rational line of thought it’s not going to stop the next group of displaying the next urgent message after seeing how viral these photos go. This is the 3rd “political” message on el cap in the last year and to think it stops after this is delusional. 

Not a thing and that is OK.  It is called free speech.

climber pat wrote:

The flag was there for only a little while and was taken down in time for the people taking pictures at particular time, I gather there is some special moment where the light is just right to get a nice picture, to get their pictures without the flag. 

The flag was hung to the left of Horsetail Falls where in February the sunset is on the falls thus creating exceptional lighting. More and more people have starting coming during February for this event. Thus the timing.

This is a moment of legitimate national emergency and radical action is appropriate.

Again - every single group can and routinely does declare their cause is emergent and this justifies any means necessary. I understand it’s free speech I’m not saying this should somehow be outlawed by any means, I am just saying expect to see a huge pro life banner next, or whatever aggravating opposing view irritates you the most. If everyone is ok with transforming our most magnificent features into billboards for the current emergency then carry on. You will definitely get the message out there 

take take take take wrote:

I don’t disagree with the message here but will say this is a horrifying trend of people hijacking el cap’s beauty to push a message. If you’re ok with this, then that means you better be ok with the other side of the aisle doing the same thing with whatever message you hate the most. You’re just not able to say “my message is specifically ok because xyz but no one else’s” that’s just not realistic or how it works. If you wouldn’t be ok with a 50ft banner with a pro life message hung across half dome then this should bother you. 

That's a fair point. My two cents would be that it's in better taste if the protest is directly related to the park and/or the way people use that space... but I'd prefer  to drive this discussion towards the more important and relevant topic of how these government employee issues affect public lands and how we enjoy them, as opposed to the debate about hanging stuff on El Cap... which is less fruitful and simply driven by opinions.

I really wish us climbers could come together and send a communal message to the tune of: don't fuck with our national parks, don't fuck with the resources allocated towards the protected spaces we love. 

take take take take wrote:

I don’t disagree with the message here but will say this is a horrifying trend of people hijacking el cap’s beauty to push a message. If you’re ok with this, then that means you better be ok with the other side of the aisle doing the same thing with whatever message you hate the most. You’re just not able to say “my message is specifically ok because xyz but no one else’s” that’s just not realistic or how it works. If you wouldn’t be ok with a 50ft banner with a pro life message hung across half dome then this should bother you. 

When I fully remove all emotion and personal moral stances prior to making a judgement on what you've said, I can't say anything other than - this is a very rational and reasonable take. Well done, truly. 

Even completely insane people believe with all their being that they are the correct ones. Thus, I have to agree with you based on the reasoning that I would not be ok with the other side doing this and therefore, while I agree with the message, I can't totally get on board with the delivery system in this case. 

Daniel Kay wrote:

This is a moment of legitimate national emergency and radical action is appropriate.

Couldn’t agree more, but hanging a flag upside down is not exactly radical. 

Cosmic Hotdog wrote:

When I fully remove all emotion and personal moral stances prior to making a judgement on what you've said, I can't say anything other than - this is a very rational and reasonable take. Well done, truly. 

Even completely insane people believe with all their being that they are the correct ones. Thus, I have to agree with you based on the reasoning that I would not be ok with the other side doing this and therefore, while I agree with the message, I can't totally get on board with the delivery system in this case. 

I'll take the other side of the debate, partially. I disagree that a pro-life banner, which has no possible connection to El Cap, would be the same as a this, a signal of distress, which is applicable specifically to our parks but also generally. However in both cases it's performative and irrelevant; assuming that there is no alteration of the rock. I'd rather some idiots spend a day putting up a stupid banner than harassing someone seeking healthcare. 

I'd rather the activists who did this found a more effective way to voice their opinions,  though there isn't much available at this point as far as I know. 

Being upset about a flag is pointless at best and at worst reinforces the idea that protest is only appropriate if nobody is ever inconvenienced, which is a dangerous concept that seeks to keep people powerless. 

I'm deeply concerned about our trajectory but it did make me smile to see this; despite the fact that it's fundamentally pointless.