#and would probably joined another revolution if he deemed it possible enough to work

[blueflyingturtleontheway]

hi! i've been looking through ur eoa posts and i really like all your ideas/hcs! maybe it's a dumb question but what are ur general thoughts about gabe? do u have any hcs or fic ideas for him? that's okay if u don't reply to this ask tho lol

Thank you so much for this ask! And I'm glad you enjoy my ideas <3 This question is definitely not stupid and you really made my day by asking this!

Generally I think Gabe is an amazing character, even if his growth is subtler than the other characters. When you think about it though, his career was the one that developed the most, since he went from lieutenant, to captain to general in the finale! I really like his personality and I think it balances really well with the rest of Cuatro Amigos, and his relationships with them and other characters like his parents and his troop are all very diverse and do a lot to develop his character.

When it comes to headcanons, I have a few major ones, like: Gabe is an excellent chess player and really enjoys it as a past time (stolen from @lieutenant-amuel to be fair >:>), there's this general idea in the fandom that he loved stories about brave knights when he was a child, and I love it too! Another not-really-headcanon is that Gabe plays the trumpet, which we actually saw in the show, but I headcanon that he learned it from his fencing teacher (the one he mentioned in Princess Knight) and he plays it every morning to wake up his troop (they really hate him for that lol). I think my favourite headcanon that I came up with is the one that Gabe was friends with lots of younger kids in his neighborhood. He was always either babysitting the younger ones or playing with them outside. That's why he's really good with kids and storytelling, and generally likes to get silly sometimes :3

Also I'm not sure if it's a headcanon or just a thought, but as an Avaloran born over 20 years into Shuriki's rule, whose parents weren't the most rebelling, Gabe... never really had much against Shuriki. Sure, he knew that she banned music and many holidays and festivals, but the thing is, he never really knew them. I headcanon that he first heard actual, instrumental music when he was 15! He wasn't pro-Shuriki in any way, he disliked her in a way but also... generally didn't think about her a lot. His anger was more directed at the guards and their general, because that's the oppression he experienced. Of course he knew that Shuriki, as the ruler, was allowing that, but he didn't know enough about ruling to have any opinions on her...

Maybe a little sadder headcanon is that in his teens, before he joined the guard, he used to fight with the guards a lot. He always did it to protect other people and generally only in good cause... but he often came home bruised or with minor wounds. One time he was so beaten up, he couldn't get home by himself, luckily one of the guards (one of the few that were genuinely good people, but still too cowardly to actually prevent the beating) came back for him and helped him. He still has bruises from this day, but usually hides them...

And now to the good stuff! I have actually a lot of ideas for fics about him, but given that I actually want to write them some day, I'll try to describe them as spoiler-free as possible.

A platonic Gabe and Elena fic, involves dragons

A Gabe and Rico fic, Navidad

Three (3!) fics planned with @ducksisthebest

Another Gabe and Elena fic, post The Last Laugh

Wow I do have a lot of Gabe and Elena fics but this one involves Chloe

The gosh darned chess set!

Gabe, Gabriel and Gabe/riel (Yes, I WILL write it HDB, you can't stop me)

And finally... *drumroll*... an epic multichapter Gabe and Guapo fic that I'll probably never actually write but my honor is it EPIC

Again, thank you so much for the ask! I love talking about my ideas and it turns out that I think about Gabe a lot XD

[illionoisprelawland-blog]

Don’t Tread On What?

By Brian Uhler, University of Chicago Class of 2021

July 7, 2020

The “Don’t Tread On Me” flag: a flag common enough that most people have seen it, but rare enough that the everyday person probably does not know what it really means. With its bright yellow background and the coiled rattlesnake ready to attack, this flag is both striking and intriguing. While much less controversial to the Confederate Flag but far more controversial than the United States flag, this lesser-known flag is one worth knowing a bit about. Some fly this flag as a political message, and some think that the flag is a symbol of racism. But what are the flag’s true origins? What is its true meaning?

In the times of the American Revolution, the uprising colonies made no attempt to hide their distaste of the oppressive British government that controlled them. A popular symbol of this anti-tyranny message was the snake; it appeared all over the colonies at the time, on uniforms, banners, and of course, flags. (2) A notable use of the snake symbol at the time was Benjamin Franklin’s famous “Join or Die” depiction, an illustration of a snake separated into many pieces, with each piece representing a single colony. This was meant to show how only together could the colonies rise up against their oppressors; individually, they were sure to fail. In fact, the snake symbol is often attributed to Franklin himself; in his Pennsylvania Gazette, while protesting the British practice of sending convicts to America, Franklin suggested that the colonists ship a cargo of rattlesnakes back to the British. (3) The American authors that frequently used the snake as a symbol felt that the rattlesnake was a good representation of America’s virtues because the individual rattles (colonies) produce no sound, but when united they can be heard around the world, and while a rattlesnake does not attack when not provoked, it can be fierce and deadly to those that cross its path. So, given the widespread use of the snake symbol at the time of the American Revolution, it seems unsurprising that the “Don’t Tread On Me” flag uses a snake. But as for this particular flag’s origin, the first thing worth noting is that the flag’s true name is actually the Gadsden Flag, named after Colonel Christopher Gadsden. Gadsden was a patriot from South Carolina who served the Continental Army. In 1775, when Washington and the Second Continental Congress began their mission of capturing enemy cargo ships, they enlisted their newly formed Navy as well as five companies of Marines. Many of these Marines carried drums that were painted yellow and decorated with a ferocious-looking rattlesnake that was coiled and ready to strike. Written on these drums was the motto “Don’t Tread On Me.” (1) Colonel Gadsden had seen this yellow banner and very much liked it, going as far as to adapt it into an actual flag. Gadsden made widespread use of it and popularized it among the colonists in the Revolution.

However, there are people that believe that the Gadsden Flag is racist. Not so long ago, a person filed a formal complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), alleging that he (an African-American person) was subject to discrimination when a coworker wore a hat to work that had an insignia of the Gadsden Flag on it. (5) There may be some merit to this accusation; while the origins of the flag are non-racial and the flag is often used in modern times by non-racial groups such as the Tea Party, gun rights activists, and patriots in general, the flag has also been used by white supremacists. But is the fact that some have used a symbol in connection with a racist message sufficient grounds to deem the Gadsden Flag to be a racist flag? In other words, given that the Gadsden Flag clearly does not have racist origins, is it a tenable position to suggest that the flag’s meaning has changed into one that is no longer tolerable by the country?

As was previously mentioned, while the Gadsden Flag still bears its original purpose as a symbol against government tyranny, it has been used in many different ways since the Revolutionary War. It has substantial popularity among members of the Libertarian party, serving as a symbol of individual rights and minimal government. However, the flag is not always used for messages that are non-racial. In 2014, after two Las Vegas police officers were killed, their bodies were covered by the flag. This can easily be interpreted as problematic when it is known that the shooters of these officers reportedly spoke of white supremacy, starting revolutions, and killing police officers. (4) Here, we have two different uses of the same flag. On one hand, the Gadsden Flag was used for political, non-racial purposes. But on the other hand, the flag is being used in a way that ties it to a racialized, white-supremacist movement. How can one flag have such different meanings? John Hartvigsen, a flag expert and president of the North American Vexillological Association, suggests that a flag may derive some of its meaning from the individual who displays the flag, or from the individual who sees the flag. (4)So, if a flag can get its meaning from the person displaying it or the person seeing it, how can we know what a flag actually means?

Given the different interpretations and uses of the Gadsden flag, from its original purpose and message to its various modern-day uses, along with the suggestion from a flag expert concerning how flags get their meanings, it seems as if there are three potential sources of a flag’s meaning: first, the flag bears its original, intended meaning, given to it by its creator; second, the displayer of the flag gives the flag its meaning; or third, the person that sees the flag decides for him/herself what the flag means. 

If a flag gets its meaning from its original creator, then if the original intent is known and indisputable, its meaning is likewise indisputable. This is a rather clear-cut scenario; either a flag has neutral connotations and there likely exists no reason to prevent displaying the flag, or the flag’s origins make the flag a symbol that should not be displayed at any time.

If a flag gets its meaning from the displayer of the flag, the scenario is far less clear-cut and a very clear and obvious problem quickly arises. In this scenario, any flag with any origin could be interpreted as having a neutral (and thus, not negative) meaning by the person displaying the flag, and this leads to the very real possibility of some rather undesirable consequences. Take the example of the Confederate Flag; the Confederate Flag, classified by the Anti-Defamation League as a “general hate symbol” (6) is essentially tabooed in modern society for its attachment to slavery. Its origins have generally caused this flag to be seen as racist, and thus, most people agree that it is not a good and right decision to fly the Confederate Flag. But if we adopt a position on the meaning of flags that allows for the flag’s meaning to be whatever the displayer wants it to be, then there is no justification to have a problem with a person flying the Confederate Flag. The scenario would look something like this: person A flies the Confederate Flag. Person B, offended by the flag, asks person A to take down the flag because it is racist and offensive. Person A responds that although the Confederate Flag has such origins, it does not bear that meaning because person A flies the flag with another intention (whatever that intention may be). Clearly, this reasoning very easily allows for some undesirable situations to arise. Whatever reason that a person could have for flying the Confederate Flag, it will still be unacceptable in society.

If a flag gets its meaning from a person that sees the flag, we run into a similar but essentially opposite problem. If a person that sees a flag can determine its meaning, then it is entirely possible that the subjectivity of that person could make an inoffensive flag’s meaning into something offensive. For example, if I draw a stick figure on a piece of paper and wave it around like a flag, this could be seen as offensive. While obviously unreasonable, this scenario fits perfectly with the notion of a flag deriving its meaning from its observer. Furthermore, like in the previous case mentioned having to do with the EEOC, would any person that is offended by any flag have justification to have the flag removed? Perhaps it may have been justified in that case, or perhaps it is justified in any case in which a person is offended by a flag.

Some might argue that the basis of a flag’s meaning does not perfectly fit into one of these three possibilities but rather it is some combination of the three possibilities. This may very well be the case, but the actual point at issue is deciding whether or not a flag can justifiably be removed. In the aforementioned case of the Gadsden Flag being used in connection with a white supremacist movement, can it reasonably be argued that the point at issue here was the flag itself? Certainly not. The problem in that situation was that the flag was used in a way that was blatantly offensive; the flag was used to convey a hateful message, a message far from its intended meaning. Using a flag beyond its intended meaning can be harmless, such as those that use the flag as a symbol against government oppression, but use of a flag beyond its intended meaning can also be very harmful. However, removing a flag whose meaning has been perverted into something hateful will not stop the hatred that fueled the action in the first place; stopping the vehicle used to display a hateful message will not stop the hateful message itself. This can be likened to the use of an everyday tool such a hammer. A hammer is merely a tool – it can be used to build, or it can be used to destroy. Hopefully, we as a society will choose to use our proverbial hammers to build and not to destroy, and to use symbols and flags in ways that bring our society together, not pull us apart.

________________________________________________________________

(1) “The True History Behind the Gadsden Flag.” Patriot Wood, www.patriotwood.com/blogs/news/the-true-history-behind-the-gadsden-flag.

(2) Gadsden Flag History, www.gadsden.info/history.html.

(3) “The Gadsden Flag.” USFlag.org: A Website Dedicated to the Flag of the United States of America - History of the Flag of the United States of America, www.chamberofcommerce.org/usflag/history/gadsden.html.

(4) Walker, Rob, et al. “The Shifting Symbolism of the Gadsden Flag.” The New Yorker, www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-shifting-symbolism-of-the-gadsden-flag

(5) Volokh, Eugene. “Wearing 'Don't Tread on Me' Insignia Could Be Punishable Racial Harassment.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 3 Aug. 2016, www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2016/08/03/wearing-dont-tread-on-me-insignia-could-be-punishable-racial-harassment/.

(6) “Confederate Flag.” Anti-Defamation League, www.adl.org/education/references/hate-symbols/confederate-flag.