Freedom fries was apolitically motivated renaming offrench fries in theUnited States. The term was coined in February 2003 in a North Carolina restaurant, and was widely publicized a month later when the thenRepublican Chairman of theCommittee on House Administration,Bob Ney, renamed the menu item in three Congressional cafeterias. The political renaming occurred in context ofFrance'sopposition to the proposedinvasion of Iraq. Although some restaurants around the nation adopted the renaming, the term became unpopular, in part due todecreasing popularity of the Iraq War. After Ney's resignation as Chairman in 2006, the change of name in Congressional cafeterias was reverted.
After theSeptember 11 attacks byAl-Qaeda and the declaration of a "War on Terror" by PresidentGeorge W. Bush, aninvasion of Iraq was proposed, based onfalse arguments about Iraq owning weapons of mass destruction.[1] During theUnited Nations Security Council deliberations,French Minister of Foreign AffairsDominique de Villepin made it clear France would neither support nor participate in the invasion, and that it would veto any resolution that mandates an invasion of Iraq.[2] ThoughRussia andChina also opposed the invasion, they had not threatened to use theirveto power on theSecurity Council; as such, France was perceived as the main barrier to the American and British effort to secure a UN mandate for invasion. This caused some Americans to accuse France of betrayal, reigniting prioranti-French sentiment in the United States.[3]
Renaming was initiated in February 2003 byBeaufort,North Carolina, "Cubbie's" restaurant owner Neal Rowland, who said he was motivated by similar actions againstGermany inWorld War I, when "sauerkraut was called liberty cabbage, and frankfurters were renamedhot dogs."[4][5] 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."[6] In March 2007, Rowland obtained atrademark registration for the term "freedom fries", which was cancelled in November 2013.[7]
On March 11, 2003,RepublicanU.S. RepresentativesBob Ney andWalter B. Jones directed the three House cafeterias to change all references to French fries,French toast, andFrench bread on menus, and replace them withFreedom fries,Freedom toast, andFreedom bread, respectively.[8][9] 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.'"[5][10] As Ney was Chairman of theUnited 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 onCapitol Hill have with our so-called ally, France."[11] When asked about his view on the change, Jones said it was a "lighthearted gesture."[12] This also came to apply to dining halls for theCoalition Provisional Authority and theMulti-National Force – Iraq during theU.S. occupation of Iraq.[13]
In response to the change,French Embassy spokeswomanNathalie Loiseau commented "It's exactly a non-issue ... we focus on the serious issues"[14] and noted that fries originated inBelgium.[15] 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."[16] After the name reversal, an embassy spokeswoman said: "our relations are definitely much more important than potatoes ... and our relations are back on track."[5]
In a 2005 opinion poll byGallup, 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. However, only 15% of participants actually considered using the term "freedom fries"; 80% said they would continue to call them "french fries".[17] Several restaurants followed the House's change.[10][18] As of 2020, several American restaurants still used the name "freedom fries".[19] Opposing the name change,Saturn Cafe inSanta Cruz, California, changed their menu to "Impeach George W. Bush fries."[20] Meanwhile,Reckitt Benckiser, maker ofFrench'smustard, were sufficiently concerned about the movement to publicly clarify that its brand derived from a family name.[21]
MassachusettsDemocratic CongressmanBarney Frank noted that the change made "Congress look even sillier than it sometimes looks,"[22]New York Democratic CongressmanJosé Serrano characterized the renaming as "petty grandstanding," and urged fellow legislators to concentrate on more pressing issues.[23]
TheFrench Americanindie bandFreedom Fry chose their name based on the Freedom Fries phenomenon.[24] In 2005,Robert Plant and his bandStrange Sensation released the albumMighty ReArranger, which contains the track '"Freedom Fries," ananti-war song whose lyrics contains the words "Freedom fries and burns and scars, the liberator goes too far."[25]
On August 2, 2006, the House cafeteria menus were changed back without any announcement.[5] The change was made by the new House Administration Committee Chairman,Vern Ehlers, who replaced Ney following his resignation due toa scandal. When asked about his decision, Ehlers responded, "It's no big deal ... It's not news."[26] When asked in 2005 about his opinion on the "freedom fries" episode,Walter B. Jones responded, "I wish it had never happened."[27]
