Cook County reveals new flag
For years, the Cook County flag was considered by flag enthusiasts to be a bit of a dud — known in the flag world by the derogatory acronym SOB: seal on a bedsheet.
That all changed Tuesday with the “big reveal” of a new county flag that was the result of a design contest that was open to students from the county’s 500plus high schools.
The winning design came from Drew Duffy, a senior at Glenbrook South High School.
A Y shape that symbolizes the Chicago River’s split at Wolf Point anchors the new flag. Its green outline symbolizes riverbanks, nature and the county’s forest preserves.
Six red stars symbolize the founding of Cook County, founding of Cook County Health, founding of Cook County Department of Public Health, founding of the Juvenile Temporary Detention Center, and the importance of townships and local government. The stars are red, the color of social change.
It was important that the flag meet vexillological standards (vexillology is the study of flags), namely that the design be simple, meaningful and easy to remember, with only a few colors and no words. A total of 297 designs were submitted by students from 40 high schools.
An appointed flag advisory panel narrowed the selection to six flags in March. Finalists were paired with volunteer mentors that are professional designers. They helped refine and formalize the students’ designs.
“I’ve always found flags really interesting,” Duffy, 17, said during a phone chat Tuesday.
“I was obsessed with a book about world flags my mom got for me when I was little. The world was shut down when I designed this flag, and it became a passion project.”
The new flag will first be raised later this summer in a ceremony at Daley Plaza.