This summer headlines relating to the Confederate flag were ubiquitous. It reminded us of a famous quote from one of the greatest writers in American history, Southern author William Faulkner. He once said “History is not was, it is.”
The confederate flag, with its pervasive presence in American culture, is emblematic of this saying. Ole Miss linebacker C.J. Johnson put the flag in its place, and the debate in the proper context.
Johnson had some strong comments about the Confederate flag when he was interviewed by ESPN.
“It sickens me when I see [a Confederate flag] on people’s cars on campus. If you have the Confederate flag on your vehicle, you have a problem,” Johnson said.
“And I don’t care if it’s socially what you believe in or it’s morally what you believe in or you’re just doing it for shits and giggles. It’s just the fact of what it stands for. It’s almost like you might as well put a tag on the front of your car that says ‘n—–.’ That’s really what it boils down to. You might as well just put a big tag on the front of your car or hang a big flag on the back of your car and just say the N-word.”
Kudos to Johnson for speaking his mind and telling it exactly like it is. PBS has been re-airing the Ken Burns Civil War documentaries all week, and as the series concluded one speaker reminds us that although the South lost the war from a military standpoint, they won the war in regards to civil rights.
It wasn’t until a century after the war ended that the Civil Rights act was passed. When President Lyndon Johnson signed it into law in 1964 he said “I think we just delivered the South to the Republican party for a long time to come.”
That’s the macro level of exploring the Confederate flag issue. Here’s the the micro level.
Ole Miss athletics has a troubled history with the confederate flag, as it omnipresent at Rebels sporting events up until the 1990s. The University of Mississippi eradicated the Confederate flag from their logo and imagery about 20 years ago. They banned the flag from the football stadium and replaced the Southern Cross with “Battle Ms,” a long time ago. Unfortunately, the state flag still has the confederate flag in upper left hand corner.
What’s worse is the reason it’s there.
The cross of St. Andrews, otherwise known as the Confederate battle flag was added to Mississippi’s state flag in 1894. It’s presence symbolized the reclaiming of the state after reconstruction ended in 1877.
Ole Miss Football Coach Hugh Freeze was asked about the state flag, and the nickname “Rebels,” during his time on dais at the SEC Media Days. Freeze called for the removal of the Confederate imagery from the state flag.
Paul M. Banks owns, operates and writes The Sports Bank.net, which is part of the FOX Sports Engage Network. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, currently contributes to the Chicago Tribune RedEye edition. He also appears regularly on numerous talk radio stations all across the country. Catch him Tuesdays on KOZN 1620 the Zone.
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