Late Sunday night the Gadsden "Don't Tread On Me" flag suddenly appeared at the Bureau of Land Management building outside of Hines, Oregon. The flag was hanging below the U.S. flag on the agency flagpole shortly before midnight. Law enforcement arrived shortly after people began to notice it. The flag wasn't present Monday morning.
The flag was designed by American general Christopher Gadsden during the American Revolution, and now is often associated with anti-federal government political movements.
So, the Gadsden "Don't tread on me" flag is suddenly hanging at BLM HQ outside Burns. #OregonStandoff pic.twitter.com/16nRBMRvEZ
— Amanda Peacher (@amandapeacher) February 1, 2016
Since Saturday, activists with the Pacific Patriots Network (PPN) have arrived in Burns to protest the shooting death of LaVoy Finicum, spokesman for the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge occupation who was killed in an officer-involved shooting on January 26th. The activists are planning a peaceful rally the Harney County Courthouse on noon Monday to demand the removal of local county officials and the FBI from Harney County.
Since the beginning of the occupation, PPN organizers have tried to insert themselves as intermediaries between law enforcement and the militants, delivering letters with demands and proposals for peaceful resolution.
Harney County residents are also planning a counter protest in support of local officials and law enforcement.