Kansas OKs new license plate to benefit gun group; critics say it celebrates slavery

The Kansas Legislature has approved a new license plate design with a flag that critics say honors a slave trader and was prominently featured in the U.S. Capitol invasion in January.

Sales of the plate will benefit the Kansas State Rifle Association, the state affiliate of the National Rifle Association and the leading gun-rights lobbying group in the Statehouse.

The new plate will be designed around the Gadsden Flag, a Revolutionary War banner featuring a coiled rattlesnake and the phrase “Don’t Tread on Me.”

The yellow flag was originally a banner of the early U.S. Marines, but more recently has been adopted as a symbol of resistance to the contemporary United States government.

Sen. David Haley, D-Kansas City and one of only two African-American state senators, objected to having Gadsden Flags decorating Kansas license plates.

The flag was designed by Christopher Gadsden, a colonel in the Continental Army who also played a key role in the slave trade. He owned Gadsden’s Wharf in Charleston, S.C., where an estimated 100,000 captive Africans entered the country and were auctioned off as slaves.

Haley said he “reluctantly” voted yes on the overall bill, House Bill 2166, to support the five other causes whose custom license plates were included.

But “For the legacy of this despot (Gadsden) who too will be included, I’m ashamed that we have added this to this bill,” he said. “Why we have to keep this foul piece in is beyond me on something else that is so well-done.”

The other plates authorized by the bill are:

▪ Braden’s Hope for Childhood Cancer and the Love, Chloe Foundation, two groups involved in providing support and research in pediatric cancer.

▪ Alpha Kappa Alpha and Delta Sigma Theta, two historically African-American sororities for college women.

▪ A plate titled “Proud Educator;” proceeds to benefit the Kansas Independent College Association.

Rep. Blake Carpenter, R-Derby and a chief proponent of the Gadsden Flag plate, said to him and many others, it symbolizes freedom from tyranny.

“I think that the ‘Don’t Tread on Me’ slogan is one that a lot of people can identify with and not having the government trample on their rights,” he said. “When I walk my district, there’s a lot of bumper stickers with Gadsden Flag . . . there’s a lot of flags flying in the district . . . There’s a lot of our constituents who really will appreciate this license plate.”

Carpenter said many of the founding fathers, including George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, are celebrated by Democrats although they owned slaves. He questioned whether Gadsden’s role in the slave trade was as direct as some have claimed.

“Personally, I would like to go look at the history of it,” Carpenter said. “Did he just build the wharf or was he owner and operator of it? That’s the questions that I would have.”

He said the Kansas Rifle Association was chosen as the beneficiary because of its role in promoting gun training and ensuring that “the next generation of hunters and those folks are prepared and have the ability to hunt, fish, and really have a cornerstone for our rights here in Kansas.”

Kansas special-interest license plates are usually issued to benefit causes such as veterans, educational institutions and noncontroversial charitable organizations.

One recent example is the Wichita flag plate, which generates funds for the city parks foundation. Other special plates that benefit groups include 4H, Special Olympics and the Eisenhower Presidential Library.

If Gov. Laura Kelly doesn’t veto the bill, the Gadsden Flag plate will be the state’s first specialty license plate the state has issued specifically for the benefit of a political organization.

In 2018, the Legislature authorized a plate bearing the slogan “Choose Life,” a rally cry of abortion opponents. But that plate had no organizational sponsor and any proceeds would go to the state treasury.

The Choose Life plate has not been issued because there aren’t enough orders for it yet, said Zach Fletcher, spokesman for the Department of Revenue.

A provision in HB 2166 will reduce the number of subscribers required to issue the Choose Life plate from 1,000 orders to 100.

The Kansas State Rifle Association will get $25 per year for each Gadsden Flag plate sold.

The organization does have some apolitical goals, but also routinely lobbies the Legislature for relaxation of gun laws. It’s been instrumental in passing several statutes, including:

▪ A law guaranteeing the right to carry firearms openly or concealed in most public places.

▪ A requirement that state universities allow concealed carry on campuses and in dormitories.

▪ A Second Amendment Protection Act that sought to exempt guns and silencers from federal regulation if they were manufactured in Kansas and did not cross state lines.

The association also has a political action committee that makes direct donations to lawmakers’ campaigns, including $1,000 last year to the Senate campaign of. J.R. Claeys, R-Salina, who carried the bill on the Senate floor. Claeys did not return a phone call seeking comment.

Along with Claeys, Rep. Henry Helgerson, D-Wichita, was one of six members of the conference committee on HB 2166.

He said he opposed the bill because of the Gadsden Flag’s historical ties to the slave trade and its role as a rallying symbol in the Capitol riot, where insurgents sought to derail certification of Joe Biden’s victory in last year’s presidential election.

Helgerson also objected to the process.

The Gadsen Flag plate was not included in the original draft of the bill that passed the House. It was added later in the Senate Transportation Committee, where Claeys is vice chairman.

That path bypassed the regular hearing process in both chambers, Helgerson said.

“If you’re going to have a license tag, you have a hearing about it, so proponents and opponents can have some discussion,” Helgerson said. “This has not had any discussion in the last several years.”

Rep. Leo Delperdang, R-Wichita, also a member of the conference committee, said Claeys was the driving force behind the Gadsden flag portion of HB 2166.

He said he was more or less indifferent to it.

“It’s not something I’d put on my car,” he said. “I’m a gun supporter and regular carrier, but it’s not something I want to go out and advertise either.”

The bill passed the Senate 29-5 Thursday afternoon and approved by the House on a vote of 81-41 on Thursday night.