Freedom fries is a political euphemism for French fries in the United States.
The term came to prominence in 2003 when the then Republican Chairman of the Committee
on House Administration, Bob Ney, renamed the menu item in three Congressional cafeterias
in response to France's opposition to the proposed invasion of Iraq.
Although originally supported with several restaurants changing their menus as well,
following declining support for the Iraq War, the term fell out of use.
Following Ney's resignation as Chairman, it was quietly reverted.
Background French war opposition
Following the September 11 attacks by Al-Qaeda and the declaration of a "War on Terror" by
President George W. Bush, an invasion of Iraq was proposed.
During the United Nations Security Council deliberations, French Minister of Foreign
Affairs Dominique de Villepin made it clear France would not support, nor participate
in the invasion.
This caused some Americans to accuse France of betrayal, reigniting prior anti-French
sentiment in the United States.
Initial renaming Renaming was initiated in February 2003 by
Beaufort, North Carolina "Cubbie's" restaurant owner Neal Rowland, who said he was motivated
by similar actions against Germany in World War I, when sauerkraut was called "liberty
cabbage", and frankfurters were renamed "hot dogs".
In an interview about the name change, Rowland commented "since the French are backing down
[from the war], French fries and French everything needs to be banned".
In March 2007, Rowland obtained a trademark registration for the term "freedom fries".
U.S. House adoption
On March 11, 2003 Republican U.S. Representatives Bob Ney and Walter B. Jones directed the three
House cafeterias to change all references to French fries and French toast on menus,
and replace them with Freedom fries and Freedom toast, respectively.
Jones chose to follow Cubbie's example by circulating a letter to his colleagues advocating
their renaming because, he said, "the French were 'sitting on the sidelines.'"
As Ney was Chairman of the United States House Committee on House Administration, the action
did not require any vote, as the committee has authority over House cafeterias.
According to a statement released by Ney, the renaming was intended to express displeasure
with France's "continued refusal to stand with their U.S. allies".
The statement further read: "This action today is a small but symbolic effort to show the
strong displeasure many on Capitol Hill have with our so-called ally, France."
When asked about his view on the change, Jones said it was a "lighthearted gesture."
Reactions
In response to the change, French Embassy spokeswoman Nathalie Loisau commented "It's
exactly a non-issue...
We focus on the serious issues", and noted that fries originated in Belgium.
She then remarked that France's position on the change was that they were "in a very serious
moment dealing with very serious issues, and we are not focusing on the name [Americans]
give to potatoes."
After the name reversal, an Embassy spokeswoman said: "our relations are definitely much more
important than potatoes ... and our relations are back on track."
In a 2005 opinion poll by Gallup, participants were asked if they felt the renaming of French
fries and toast was "a silly idea or a sincere expression of patriotism;" 66% answered it
was silly, 33% answered it was patriotic, and 1% had no opinion.
Several restaurants followed the Houses' change, and the name is still used by two, including
Geno's Steaks and the chain restaurant Toby Keith's I Love This Bar & Grill.
Opposed to the name change, The Saturn Cafe in Santa Cruz, California, changed their menu
to "Impeach George W. Bush fries."
Reckitt Benckiser, maker of French's mustard, sufficiently concerned about the movement,
publicly clarified that its brand derived from a family name.
Massachusetts Democratic Congressman Barney Frank noted the change "Mak[es] Congress look
even sillier than it sometimes looks."
New York Democratic Congressman José Serrano characterized the renaming as "petty grandstanding",
and urged fellow legislators to concentrate on more pressing issues.
In the March 15, 2003 episode of Saturday Night Live, Tina Fey reported this on the
satirical Weekend Update: "In a related story, in France, American cheese is now referred
to as 'idiot cheese'."
The 2006 documentary Freedom Fries: And Other Stupidity We'll Have to Explain to Our Grandchildren
directed by Carl Christman took a comedic viewpoint on American consumerism and patriotism.
In the episode Stan Knows Best of American Dad!, after being asked how his French toast
is, the main character Stan remarks: "Smelly and ungrateful!
But this American toast is delicious."
In the comic strip Doonesbury, the characters Mark Slackmeyer and Zonker Harris criticized
the name change in French.
Slackmeyer said that, translated, the U.S. liberated France in World War II; and that
many French newspaper headlines after 9/11 were "We are all American."
At the end, he states that the anti-French were "jingoistic, self-regarding conquer-monkeys!"
The French American indie band Freedom Fry chose their name based on the Freedom Fries
phenomenon.
In 2005, Robert Plant and his band Strange Sensation released Mighty ReArranger, which
contained the track "Freedom Fries;" an anti-war song, its lyrics contained: "Freedom fries
and burns and scars, the liberator goes too far."
Policy reversal On August 2, 2006 the House cafeteria menus
were silently changed back without any announcement.
The change was made by the new House Administration Committee Chairman, Vern Ehlers, who replaced
Ney following his resignation due to a scandal.
When asked about his decision, Ehlers responded, "It's no big deal...
It's not news."
When asked about his opinion on the "freedom fries" episode, Jones responded, "I wish it
had never happened."
See also Minuteman Salsa
Old Europe Cheese-eating surrender monkeys
Axis of weasels References
External links "House restaurants change name of 'french
fries' and 'french toast'", CNN.com, March 11, 2003
Johnny Depp on the Freedom Fries incident, "U.S. is like a stupid puppy", CNN.com, Sept
3, 2003 "French fries back on House menu", BBC News,
2 August 2006