The Charleston Post and Courier has the story about the NAACP’s interest in renewing and strengthening the tourism boycott of South Carolina.
According to the report, Dot Scott, president of the NAACP’s Charleston chapter, “praised the decision to revive the fight to move the flag.”
“Symbols are very important,” Scott said. “It denotes a mind-set. To many it represents ugly and mean things. Every now and then we need to be reminded … that bigotry is alive and well. The flag (stands for) the ugliness we’re still experiencing. I am in absolute support that the flag needs to go.”
According to the report, Randy Burbage, South Carolina division commander of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, was “not surprised by the NAACP’s action but does not agree with it.”
“The flag is a symbol of pride to me, men that wouldn’t give up, fighting for freedom in their own right,” Burbage said. “Our state was being invaded. They were trying to save their homes, not preserve slavery. They (NAACP) want me to respect their heritage, and yet they won’t respect mine.”
According to the report, Sen. Robert Ford, D-Charleston said, “My bill passed, and I’m satisfied with it now.”
Getting lawmakers to agree even to reconsider the flag debate would be next to impossible, said Sen. Robert Ford, D-Charleston, who joined Republican Sen. Glenn McConnell of Charleston to move the flag where it is. A two-thirds majority in both the House and Senate would be needed to bring the issue up, and that’s not likely, he said.
My response to these comments follow:
Randy Burbage says, “They (NAACP) want me to respect their heritage, and yet they won’t respect mine.”
With all due respect, this statement is false. How can you ask the NAACP to respect your heritage when you don’t respect it yourself! You let our state legislators use the Confederate flag to divide South Carolinians against each other! You should demand that they give the Confederate flag back to you because they don’t deserve to fly it. You should advocate for H-3588, as I am doing with my takedowntheflag blog.
The NAACP is saying that we shouldn’t fly the Confederate flag from Statehouse grounds because 1) South Carolina already flies a beautiful state flag — the Palmetto Flag — and 2) state politicians are using the Confederate flag to disturb South Carolinians and tourists. These are facts, and the NAACP is exactly right on these facts.
I strongly suggest that we pass H-3588. This is a bill that respects the Confederate flag and completes the compromise from 2000. This bill takes the Confederate flag away from our pandering politicians and gives it back to the people who love it, so that they can teach us about the honor of their heritage on Confederate Memorial Day.
Randy Burbage, sir, the bill H-3588 is the NAACP’s offer to respect your heritage. It’s a great offer, and, if you are really serious about respect, you should accept this offer. Do you want people to respect your heritage or do you want your beloved emblem to be a tool of pandering politicians? Seriously, please decide.
Finally, the 2/3 requirement is simply a legislative hurdle. A majority vote can remove the 2/3 requirement. Then a majority vote is all that’s needed to change the law.
1 Comment
July 21, 2008 at 8:12 pm
The only ones “dividing” the citizens of South Carolina are those, like yourself, who insist it is your right to decide what a flag represents. Who put you in charge? Have you ever heard the old adage, “Divide and conquer”? Of course you have, yet, you fail to see that this tactic has been used in the South since we lost our right of self-government in 1865. It is an ancient tactic and it’s still effective, so long as you can fool the people into fighting against themselves while the powerful elites in charge of things consolidate their own power and work to expand it. We have over 700 bases in over 130 countries around the world. They are continuing to expand their power and wealth while they keep the lemmings divided over these kinds of trumped up “issues”. Time to wake up sir and become part of the solution to the REAL problem facing all of us.
I am praying for this awakening.