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- This article is about the state slogan. For the 2006 movie, see Live Free or Die (film)
"Live Free or Die" is the official motto of New Hampshire, adopted by the General Court in 1945. It is probably the best-known of all state mottos, partly because it speaks to an aggressive independence inherent in the American dream, and partly because of its contrast to the mild sentiments usually found in such slogans.
The phrase comes from a toast written by General John Stark on July 31, 1809. Poor health forced Stark, New Hampshire's most famous soldier of the American Revolutionary War, to decline an invitation to an anniversary reunion of the Battle of Bennington and to send his toast by letter:
- Live free or die: Death is not the worst of evils.
The motto was enacted at the same time as the state emblem, on which the motto appears.
Legal battle
In 1971, the General Court mandated that the phrase appear on all non-commercial license plates, replacing "Scenic."
In 1977, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the case of Wooley v. Maynard, 430 U.S. 705, that New Hampshire could not prosecute motorists who chose to hide part or all of the slogan on license plates. George Maynard, a Jehovah's Witness, cut off "or die" from his plate for religious reasons, and was convicted of breaking the state law that required the motto. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6–3 in his favor, saying the law required people to "use their private property as a 'mobile billboard' for the State's ideological message," and that the state's interest did not outweigh free speech principles. The case drew widespread attention, partly because of the irony involved with a government trying to deny someone the freedom to change a slogan that celebrates freedom.
Similar mottos
A similar motto from the American Revolutionary War was "Unite or Die".
A possible source of such mottoes is Patrick Henry's famed March 23, 1775 speech to the House of Burgesses (the legislative body of the Virginia colony), which contained the following phrase: Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!
A medal struck at Matthew Boulton's Soho Mint, as tokens of exchange for the Paris firm of Monneron Freres, 1791-92, has on its obverse the motto Vivre libres ou mourir (Live free or die in French).
National mottos
- "Ελευθερια η Θανατος" (Eleutheria i thanatos — "Liberty or Death") is the national motto of Greece and comes from the motto of the Greek War of Independence (1821–1830).
- "Слобода или смрт" - "Sloboda ili Smrt" - "Freedom or Death" is the national motto of the Republic of Macedonia and comes from the Macedonian uprising.
- "Libertad o Muerte" - "Liberty or Death" is the national motto of Uruguay
Use in Unix
Live Free or Die is popular among Unix users, a group which also cherishes its independence. The popularity dates to the 1980s, when Armando Stettner of Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) had a set of Unix license plates printed up and given away at a Usenix conference. They were modeled on the license plates in New Hampshire, where DEC's Unix Engineering Group (UEG) was headquarted.
Stettner lived in New Hampshire at the time and owned a Toyota Celica Supra with the vanity license plate UNIX. Unfortunately the Celica was stolen, but Armando - always the comedian - sent out an email to the entire UEG organization titled "Unix has been stolen". Later, when DEC came out with their own Unix version, Ultrix, they followed Stettner's lead and printed up a legion of Ultrix plates that were distributed at trade shows.
External links
Political slogans | Mottos | State mottos of the United States | New Hampshire
"Live Free or Die"