South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley on Monday called for the state to take down the Confederate battle flag from the top of the state capitol.
Finally.
The move came in the aftermath of the shooting in the historic church, Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, in Charleston, S.C. where nine church members were killed.
Did the Confederate flag really move the 21-year-old to kill those church members? Probably not. But the flag, despite what the Sons of Confederate Veterans say, is a focal point of hatred. Sure, a lot of historians claim it has nothing to do with racism. But how can it be anything else right now?
Many years ago, Hays CISD made the move to remove the Confederate battle flag as the symbol for Hays High School. It was the right thing to do then; the symbol not only gave the wrong image of the school, but also endangered students who participated in events outside of the local Hays district.
At football games, at basketball games, students faced derision, had sodas thrown at them, were called names.
Even back to the 1980s, student band leaders, when uniforms were being purchased, begged the school board to not force them to put the flag on the new uniforms, as they felt the wrong image of the school was being portrayed.
Residents then and now claim that the choice of the flag by Hays CISD had nothing to do with racism. They said it was the choice of high school students when this district was formed. They said it was a symbol of independence.
But the fact remains that this “Memorial Banner,” as some people call it, is a symbol of division in this country.
How else can it be viewed? Radio commentators and right-wing groups are spewing hateful comments every day about the president, all the while flying this flag, this symbol, as they speak.
That’s a connection we don’t need – hate filled talk and the Confederate battle flag.
Anyone wanting to display the flag can still do so on their own property, in their own home. They can frame a flag and put it in their own private space.
But to have such a symbol grace any capitol building or any school property is an affront to so many people – black or white.
It is hurtful and hateful.
And it shouldn’t have a place in our future.
Take it down and leave it down.
