An Arizona man is in trouble with his homeowners' association over flying the Gadsden flag, which features a coiled rattlesnake and the words "Don't Tread on Me."

The flag has been adopted by members of the tea party movement for its association with the American Revolution, but Andy McDonel tells the New York Times that he has hung the flag from his roof simply for its historical significance.

Watch a report on the dispute from Fox News:
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Arizona has a state statute that allows Arizonans to fly "the Stars and Stripes, the state flag, flags representing Indian nations as well as the official flags of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard," the Times reports.

McDonel's homeowners' association is strictly interpreting that law to ban the flying of any other flags, including the Gadsden. The American Civil Liberties Union is defending McDonel, saying the homeowners' group is taking too strict a view of the statute and restricting McDonel's right to free speech.

McDonel is chronicling his struggle on a blog, where he is asking for donations for a potential legal battle.

McDonel isn't the only person to run into a dispute over the historic flag.

Eric Smith of Thornton, Colo., said he and his neighbor were sent a letter by their homeowners' association that said "Tea Party flags are not permitted. Please Remove." They were threatened with a $100-a-month fine for flying the Gadsden flag.

Colorado has a statue similar to Arizona's that specifies which flags are allowed to be flown. The homeowners' association eventually reversed its demand, saying his flag fell into the category of "political signs" instead of flags and was thus allowed.

[Was the tea party responsible for Joe Miller's win in Alaska?]

Meanwhile, a group of retired Marines in Connecticut is fighting for the flag to be flown over the state Capitol, after the Capitol police denied their request because the flag is not the official Marines flag.

"I'd learned about in the Marine Corps. It's one of the first, if not the first, Marine Corps flag," retired Marine Patrick Rubino told FoxNews.com. "They even flew it over our bases in Afghanistan and Iraq while I was there."

In March, House Republicans created a stir amid the hard-fought vote on health care reform by grabbing a Gadsden flag from the anti-reform crowd assembled outside the Capitol and brandishing it from within the building.

The flag is named after Col. Christopher Gadsden, a Continental Congress delegate from South Carolina. The flag was flown by the Navy in 1775 -- but owes its design to the famous "Join or Die" icon that Benjamin Franklin created in the 1750s to promote unity among American colonists. And that message seems more remote than ever, with contemporary political insurgents, colonial history buffs, state legislatures and civil liberties advocates all battling over the image's contested symbolic meaning.

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HOA, Laveen man fight over historic flag


There's no way Andy McDonel is taking down his "Don't Tread on Me" flag.

The homeowners association in McDonel's Laveen neighborhood told him to remove the yellow banner with the coiled snake from the front of his house.


The HOA called the flag debris and said it broke neighborhood rules.

McDonel, operations manager of a small shipping company, refuses to take it down.

The squabble has picked up national news coverage. Big subplot: The flag's a favorite emblem for the "tea party" movement.

McDonel denies he's trying to score political points.

He said he put up the flag earlier this year as a tribute to the Founding Fathers and to people serving in the military.

"I like the historical meaning of the flag," he said. "This is not political. There's no way I'm affiliated with any tea-party movement."

Neither side has budged, and now lawyers are involved.

Tempe attorney Javier Delgado, representing the Avalon Village Community Association, sent a letter to the media, saying the flag isn't among those exempted by state law from being regulated by community associations.

He said Tuesday that it was too early to say how the dispute would be settled.

He also said the association wasn't going too far in enforcing its rules.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona stepped into the squabble this week, backing McDonel.

The group sent a letter to the HOA, saying the snake banner, also known as the Gadsden Flag, is a military flag and shouldn't be restricted.

"We understand the need for rules and compliance, but it should be tempered with common sense and the law," said Dan Pochoda, the ACLU's legal director in Arizona.

McDonel quit the HOA board in July. He got the violation letter in August.

Delgado, the HOA's attorney, said it's nothing personal. McDonel isn't so sure.

"I don't have 18 cars," he said of how he keeps his property neat. "I don't have a trailer sitting in the front yard. I don't have beer cans outside. Somehow, some way, this has turned into something that should never have been."

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