{{Short description|Territorial disguise}}[[File:Canadian fan at Hyde Park corner (7741413330).jpg|thumb|A person holding a Canadian flag during the 2012 Summer Olympics in London]]
'''Flag-jacking''' ({{langx|fr|prise de drapeau}}) is the act of travelers displaying a foreign flag on their clothing or backpack in an attempt to disguise their country of origin; media reports have described this most often in the context of American tourists using Canadian flags in an attempt to be perceived as Canadians.<ref name="huffingtonpost">{{cite news|author=Allison Eberle|title=How to spot flag-jacking frauds abroad|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/allison-eberle/flag-jacking-frauds-abroad_b_3512475.html|work=The Huffington Post|date=1 July 2013|accessdate=21 August 2013}}</ref><ref name="businessinsider">{{cite web|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-appear-canadian-when-traveling-2013-7|title=11 ways Americans can act Canadian when traveling abroad|work=Business Insider|date=29 July 2013|accessdate=21 August 2013}}</ref><ref name="atlantic">{{cite web|last=Nyce|first=Caroline Mimbs|title=Do Americans Really Pretend to Be Canadian Abroad?|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2016/02/americans-pretend-to-be-canadian-while-traveling/624871/|website=The Atlantic|date=24 February 2016|access-date=4 September 2025}}</ref> While often referenced in popular culture, there is little quantitative evidence of how common the practice is, and some accounts suggest it is anecdotal or situational.<ref name="atlantic" />
==Origin== The term ''flag-jacking'' gained additional popularity after an article entitled "How to Spot Flag-Jacking Frauds Abroad" was published on 1 July 2013 by ''The Huffington Post''.<ref name="huffingtonpost" /> The article stated that flag-jacking is a transitory act involving a person's use of a country's flag to create the false impression of being a citizen of a favored nation. The most common situation, according to the article, is when Americans pose as Canadians. Instances of flag-jacking date to the late 1990s.<ref name="businessinsider" /><ref name="cnn">{{cite news|url=https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/fake-canadians-canada-day-travel/index.html|title=How to pretend you're Canadian when you travel|work=CNN|date=29 July 2013|access-date=21 August 2013}}</ref>
==Identification== Business Insider, CNN, FlightNetwork, and The Huffington Post have claimed it is possible to identify flag jackers by analysing their body language. In honor of Canada Day in 2013, FlightNetwork and their PR Agency (Pointman News Creation) commissioned Mark Bowden (of Truthplane) a top international body language expert, to provide humorous tips on how Americans can pass themselves off as Canadians by adopting gestures that he termed the "Maple-o-gy", the "Canuck Crinkle", the "Toque Tilt", the "Stars and Gripes Forever", the "Polka-Loon" and the "American Psycho".<ref name="huffingtonpost" /><ref name="businessinsider" /><ref name="cnn"/><ref>{{cite web|title=CNN Gives Tips on How To Be Canadain [sic] [video] |url=http://www.1031jackfm.ca/2013/07/02/cnn-gives-tips-on-how-to-be-canadain-video/ |date=2 July 2013 |accessdate=21 August 2013 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130717064046/http://www.1031jackfm.ca/2013/07/02/cnn-gives-tips-on-how-to-be-canadain-video/ |archivedate=July 17, 2013 }}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
Category:Canadian English Category:Canadian slang Category:Deception Category:Flags