CNN)During the Civil War, it was a patch of the South so reviled by the Confederacy for its pro-Union leanings that it in 1862 it was declared "enemy territory" by the secessionist government.
The area's most celebrated native, Andrew Johnson, was the only Southern senator to remain loyal to the Union. Johnson would go on to become president, succeeding Abraham Lincoln.
Now, more than 150 years later, Greene County, Tennessee, is once again ruffling feathers on matters pertaining to the long-gone Confederacy. This time, however, the rebellious county just might turn the historical tables and for the first time fly the Rebel flag. The county commission will vote Monday on a resolution to fly the controversial banner above its county courthouse.
The Confederate flag in
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"Commissioner Randolph may not like this history, but it has the virtue of being factual. He should be celebrating Greene County's heritage of resistance to the Confederacy, not propping up a grotesque distortion of 'history' that debases our true past and offends many, many of our own neighbors."
Flag's divisive power
The Confederate flag has long been a lightning rod, especially deep in the heart of Dixie, where the memory of Jim Crow and institutional racism still cuts deep in some quarters.
But in the wake of a hate-fueled mass murder of African-Americans in Charleston, South Carolina, in June, the Confederate flag has increasingly grown out of fashion, even below the Mason-Dixon line, as more and more institutions, retailers and state capitols distance themselves from a symbol that for so many symbolizes the very hatred embraced by the Dylann Roofs of the world.
But none of that seems to matter to Randolph, who told WJHL that his proposal "has nothing to do with race or anything."
But several of Randolph's 20 colleagues on the county commission seem to
The author mentioned that some citizens are still perturbed by the Confederate flag. While the number is slowly waning, many citizens were a part of the civil rights movement. They watched racist people protest against them using the flag as a symbol of racism, oppression, and hatred. To some, the flag may serve as a permanent reminder that racism is not truly dead in America.
“Symbol of a brave past or banner of treason?” Kevin Baker asks this in his article titled That Flag. This is the question that many people have tried to answer. The Confederate Battle Flag has been used to send many different messages to the public, and depending on who you talk to it holds different meanings. As explained in the article titled Political culture, religion, and the Confederate Battle Flag debate in Alabama written by Jonathan I. Leib and Gerald R. Webster. The article explains that, “Many traditional white southerners view the Confederate Battle Flag as emblematic of the sense of duty and sacrifice of their ancestors during the Civil War and Reconstruction. They argue that the Civil War was not about the institution of slavery
There is history to the confederate flag and most people do not know it. I think that part of the reason why people see the flag as a symbol of hate instead of a piece of history is because people do not know all of the history. If people did their research I think the people would know the history of the flag and they would not see it as a racial hate symbol they would see it as a piece of history.
The Confederate flag has now become a hot issue for South Carolina, which is the last state to have the original Confederate flag still flying on its Statehouse. What got the State’s attention was the economic boycott of South Carolina that was announced on January 1992 by the NAACP to pressure the State to remove the Confederate flag off of its Statehouse in Columbia. The NAACP’s removal request is based on the fact that they, the anti-flag groups, claim that the meaning of the Confederate flag is one of hate and discrimination. On the other hand, there are other groups that believe differently whom are called the pro-flag groups. They claim that the Confederate flag is a sign of heritage
The use of the so called confederate flag isn't really a national flag at all. The commonly used symbol of the south and recently debated symbol has come under fire as racist and as a symbol of white supremecy. In true meaning the flags shown above are all different variations of flags flown by the confederate states during their four year succession from the united States. The battle flag is the one most commonly used as a symbol of southern pride. Many believe the flag portraits proslavery views which it does not. The flags colors stand the same meaning for those on old Glory but the thirteen stars represent the thirteen succeeded states. This flag never flew for slavery but only for the rights of the individuals from 13 states. This flag
Heritage not hate: the motto of so many people who believe that the Confederate flag is a cornerstone of the history of the South and is simply a symbol of those who fought in the Civil War. But the Confederate flag does not just represent the lives of those lost fighting for what they believed in, it symbolizes the racial oppression and White supremacy that kept Black Americans from being treated as people for so long in the United States, preventing them from being able to vote, receive quality educations, and even drink from the same water fountain as a White person in America.
The American South. An area full of rich history and the home to some of the nation’s largest conflicts throughout history, such as the civil war and the civil rights movement. Southerners have always been proud of their heritage despite its rocky parts and display it for all to see with a 150 year old flag. This is proving to be problematic, though, as the Confederate flag they are all so proud of, is really only 50 years old and has been associated with ideals of white supremacy and racism. Some Southerners and other Americans choose to not believe the truth about the flag, others were never taught the truth. However, it is incredibly important in forming an opinion on the flag, and to whether or not the flag must be removed from state buildings. And the truth is, due to its historical affiliation to racist whites in the South, white supremacy groups, and recent events such as the Charleston Shooting, the Confederate rebel flag should not be flown on state buildings as it is not culturally sensitive to African American people who have been targeted by these people.
some people look at the Confederate flag and only see hate. There are people in this world that use the Confederate flag as a racist symbol, that is why people think it stands for hate. In Indiana the whole controversy over racism is not a big deal because people look at the Confederate flag and realize that it is a part of history and so many people lost their lives fighting for the Confederate flag and everything it symbolizes. In states like South Carolina there are still huge fights and shootings between a black and white person. There are still KKK groups in some of the southern states People don't take the time to think about what the flag symbolizes, because when they see the flag they instantly assume hate That is not the case for many people, a lot of veterans and other people see the flag as a symbol of heritage and do not want it taken down. The people that want it taken down has probably had racial comments or gestures made towards them, not to mention there are some people that just jump on one side of the controversy because they do not know which side is the right side and they don't want to be hated for making the wrong decision. There are some people that don't care whether the flag stays up or gets
The confederate flag is also a symbol of hate. The people who fought under the confederate flag fought to keep slavery. The flag had been used in the 1950’s and after as a symbol of opposing the civil war movement. The confederate flag has been adopted as a symbol of members of the white supremacist and KKK movement. .
In an insert in Huffington Post writer Krystie Yandoli talks about the recent trip she took to South Carolina. In this trip, she has seen The Confederate Flag being hung all around. Yandoli writes, “I've heard arguments time and again about how the Confederate flag is no longer representative of slavery…But I'm really over the whole "respect
The confederate flag, a topic that has been the center of controversy for many years now, is an emblem of southern pride and heritage to some, while to some it is purely a symbol of hate and racism. After the shootings in South Carolina, it is clear that the flag should be taken down. Since it represents white supremacy and inequality and not Southern pride.
From the 1860's to the 2000's a lot has happened with war and people's opinions on many things , Stories are getting jumbled up including this flag’s history because it has been in history for so long and people are adding their opinions that are ridiculous and that may also be one of the things that has influenced people's thoughts on the flag and not only that but the flag came from a very rough time in history and in ways it is very understanding that people got their thoughts influenced and that's why we should should take the time and help them have a better understanding on the confederate flags meaning. The rebel flag has and will always be bashed because of its history, but it is not completely racist and is not intended to be used to show hatred because of the color of someone's skin, it was the people who got a hold of the flag and flew it on their beliefs and that's one of the leading causes to the conflict on the flags meaning. The confederate flag is 154 years
Politicians throughout the United States are debating whether or not the Confederate flag should be allowed to be on the Mississippi state flag. The flag is the center of much controversy. People argue that the Confederate flag is a symbol of racism and hate and that it should not be allowed to be used in public places let alone on a state flag. While others will argue that it is a piece of history and that it honors the soldiers that died in the civil war; it is a symbol of southern pride. The confederate flag has been argued over for many years, dating all the way back to the 1800’s, but the heat of the debate sparked up in 1962. (PBS, Web. Costa-Roberts)
Within the United States of America, arguments, involving the Confederate Flag, are solved every sngle day. However, some controversies have managed to carry on from the 1800’s until present day without any solution. The text and symbolic meaning behind the “Confederate Flag” is a perfect example. The Confederate Flag is one of America’s most embattled symbolic controversies. Created in 1861in a battle between the South, Confederates, and the North, Union, two men by the name P.G.T. Beauregard and Congressman William P. Miles designed and created a flag that would represent the true southern pride and demands that would not only bring about conflict with one half of the nation but also with our American society today.
The confederate flag has been a symbol of power that has caused oppression throughout its existence, but recently, more than ever, it has come under fire due to its association with racism. In June of 2015, Dylann Roof executed nine people inside of a Black church in South Carolina. As the media began to dig into this homegrown terrorist 's background, they uncovered symbols that he attached his ideologies to. One prominent symbol was the confederate flag. In the immediate following weeks there were calls for America to divest in the confederacy. Big corporations began to pull the confederate flags from their product lines. Cities like Memphis, Tennessee, that changed the name of one of the city 's parks named after Nathan Bedford Forrest—a slave trader/owner and known racist, voted to also remove Forrest 's statue and his and his wife 's remains that lay beneath the statue. Ultimately, South Carolina 's government passed an amendment to retire the confederate flag on state grounds—vowing to 'honor ' the nine lives lost.