Very true! Back in 1952, at 12 years of age, in Northern Virginia, I and several of my cohorts had our little Confederacy. As the rest of the 7th grade class pledged allegiance to the flag, we pledged to the confederate flag that our school allowed to be hung. We truly believed the myths enabling our behavior. One day we got a new teacher who, after watching our little ritual, commanded: "you, you, you, and you, STAND UP!, GET THAT THING OFF THE WALL AND SALUTE THIS ONE!" We had no idea that he had spent WW2 as a POW in Germany. A few years later he taught American Government to us as HS Seniors. He certainly influenced my thinking for the better. DD
I strongly believe that a democracy should not support or legitimize movements that openly reject democratic principles. The Confederate flag represented a political project that broke away from the United States in order to defend slavery. The threat was not theoretical — a war was fought, and hundreds of thousands of people died.
Given that history, banning the public display of the flag nationwide would be the very least the government could do out of respect for those who lost their lives. And if necessary, the Supreme Court should step in to draw a clear line around what qualifies as protected free expression.
If you are not already familiar, you would probably enjoy the writing of Heather Fox Richardson. She often references how the failure to address the Civil War after it was over has resulted in many of the issues we see today.
Very true! Back in 1952, at 12 years of age, in Northern Virginia, I and several of my cohorts had our little Confederacy. As the rest of the 7th grade class pledged allegiance to the flag, we pledged to the confederate flag that our school allowed to be hung. We truly believed the myths enabling our behavior. One day we got a new teacher who, after watching our little ritual, commanded: "you, you, you, and you, STAND UP!, GET THAT THING OFF THE WALL AND SALUTE THIS ONE!" We had no idea that he had spent WW2 as a POW in Germany. A few years later he taught American Government to us as HS Seniors. He certainly influenced my thinking for the better. DD
Thank you for sharing the anecdote.
I strongly believe that a democracy should not support or legitimize movements that openly reject democratic principles. The Confederate flag represented a political project that broke away from the United States in order to defend slavery. The threat was not theoretical — a war was fought, and hundreds of thousands of people died.
Given that history, banning the public display of the flag nationwide would be the very least the government could do out of respect for those who lost their lives. And if necessary, the Supreme Court should step in to draw a clear line around what qualifies as protected free expression.
If you are not already familiar, you would probably enjoy the writing of Heather Fox Richardson. She often references how the failure to address the Civil War after it was over has resulted in many of the issues we see today.
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/