I know that a few years ago the southerncross was abolished in some states.
So I was wondering what’s your position about the use of the confederate flag.
Is it ok to fly it in your own house ? Is it higly “political” ?
Yes, it is “ok” to fly it in your own home.
However, you need to realize that it is interpreted differently by different people.
The problem is that it has been used by racist organizations in this century and the last.
I used to have one in my dorm room in college years ago. I would probably not do that now because I realize it can genuinely offend decent people.
It makes me sick to see it flying next to a swastika.
[quote]Horazio wrote:
I know that a few years ago the southerncross was abolished in some states.
So I was wondering what’s your position about the use of the confederate flag.
Is it ok to fly it in your own house ? Is it higly “political” ?
[/quote]
Well, it can be political and racial. To many people in this country the “rebel” flag symbolizes rascism, white supremists, etc.
Of course, to other people, especially in the south, the flag symbolizes disdain for big central governments that attempt to push beliefs on people different then themselves.
I always thought the Southern Cross was a constellation only seen in the southern hemisphere…and a nice song by CSNY
I don’t think it means anything bad and it’s meaning is non-racist, but I stay out in back woods Mississippi and my college is like 80% black so it wouldn’t go down here.
Due to freedom of speech, the flag absolutely should be allowed to be flown in private.
Is it a racist symbol? To some, to others political and to others just a shallow symbol of the south.
Symbols only mean what their bearer intend. If the KKK marches with a flag, it is probably racist in intent. I personally see it as a political symbol that stands for strong state gov’ts unified by a federal gov’t, rather than a strong federal gov’t imposing it’s will every where.
Others see it as a sense of identity for their region with no deeper meaning behind it.
The swastika was origianally an indian symbol of peace. It is now widely recognized as a symbol of hate and oppression.
I can see banning it from gov’t use as it is a symbol of another nation, but not personal.
Even if it is used as a symbol of hate at times, the freedom of speech is a freedom for all.
As said earlier, the confederate flag has come to symbolize, white racism against minorities.
Just as the swastika was and is a religious symbol to many, today it is a symbol of racism.
If you are comfortable w/ that, let it fly.
Yeah…I’ll agree with on this one in that its all in the way that the symbol is used…some may still regard the swastika as a symbol of pease…but the majority of people probably don’t
hmmmm I missread emdawg1’s post my mistake on the confederate flag
the native american “swastica” spins the other way. there is an ancient buddhist symbol that looks just like the swastica though. it is a widley used symbol throughout ancient cultures as it is a naturaly occouring pattern in basket weaving.
[quote]texasguy1 wrote:
Due to freedom of speech, the flag absolutely should be allowed to be flown in private.
Is it a racist symbol? To some, to others political and to others just a shallow symbol of the south.
Symbols only mean what their bearer intend. If the KKK marches with a flag, it is probably racist in intent. I personally see it as a political symbol that stands for strong state gov’ts unified by a federal gov’t, rather than a strong federal gov’t imposing it’s will every where.
Others see it as a sense of identity for their region with no deeper meaning behind it.
The swastika was origianally an indian symbol of peace. It is now widely recognized as a symbol of hate and oppression.
I can see banning it from gov’t use as it is a symbol of another nation, but not personal.
Even if it is used as a symbol of hate at times, the freedom of speech is a freedom for all.
[/quote]
Well said.
Don’t Pantera use the confederate flag on their merchandise? What is the intent behind it?
My fore-fathers on both sides of the family all fought for the South, even though none of them owned slaves, but I wouldn’t display the flag in my own home. Never mind the fact that the flag has been co-opted by white trash, skin heads, and the KKK.
I think the war was more about politics and economics than about slavery, but if you were descended from slaves, the only thing that matters is that your people were freed from bondage, and that flag is a symbol of bondage.
[quote]Uncle Gabby wrote:
My fore-fathers on both sides of the family all fought for the South, even though none of them owned slaves, but I wouldn’t display the flag in my own home. Never mind the fact that the flag has been co-opted by white trash, skin heads, and the KKK.
I think the war was more about politics and economics than about slavery, but if you were descended from slaves, the only thing that matters is that your people were freed from bondage, and that flag is a symbol of bondage.[/quote]
As you surmise, the war was about states’ rights and taxation regarding moving goods across state borders. Lincoln made it about slavery more or less as an election platform in 1864. While it worked as a platform, it also assured his demise in 1865.
And what people refer to as “the confederate flag” was really the Confederate battle flag – not the flag of the Confederate States. The distinction matters in a sociopolitical sense.
This probably should be in politics.
i fly my stars and bars proudly
There’s been a controversy for years at my school, LSU, about a purple and gold (school colors) rebel flag that a lot of people fly at their tail gates for football games.
A lot of white folks in the South simply regard the flag as a symbol of southern pride.
It’s the minorities that have problems with it, for obvious reasons.
What if I use the confederate flag? I’m Hispanic and I think it looks cool.
[quote]AdamC wrote:
Don’t Pantera use the confederate flag on their merchandise? What is the intent behind it?[/quote]
They are a southern band.
I have a couple of them. It’s a mixture of all types of things, all types of meanings.
I like it because if nothing else, to people that know absolutely nothing of history or the War, it’s the only flag that you can put on that back of your truck that says, “Fuck you”.
I used to think that it should be able to fly freely, most famously at SC’s statehouse. Now, I believe that it should not be in on any Federal building, simply for the reason that it is such a brutal symbol to so many.
[quote]detazathoth wrote:
What if I use the confederate flag? I’m Hispanic and I think it looks cool.[/quote]
That’s called a paradox.