The Confederate flag has always been quick to create controversy. To some it represents oppression of a time long ago, to some it is the heritage and sacrifice of their ancestors, to some it is simply a piece of cloth.
This week it has especially come under fire again. After the tragic shooting in Charleston, SC the week before, SC governor Nikki Haley made the decision: "It's time to remove the flag from capitol grounds." Following suit, several other states have started the process including Alabama, Mississippi, Virginia, and Georgia among others. Most of these states were the heart and soul of the confederacy. Do I think that these states are in the wrong or are denying the heritage and rich history of their past? Nope. What Nikki Haley did showed unity as a state in a dark time for many of its residents. The flag not being flown at government building gave a message of support. Most states do not fly anything except the U.S. flag, and their official state flag over government buildings.
This being said, it has gone too far. Retailers such as Walmart, Target, Sears, and online retailers Amazon and eBay have pulled flags off their shelves and are not allowing customers to purchase them at all. Apple has banned all Civil War games and apps that involve the flag, though they are slowly re-releasing a few. It has come to the point where Civil War monuments have had flags taken down. Monuments that were created to memorialize people that fought and died for what at the time was their country. Taking flags down from official government buildings is one thing, but it has become a movement to try and rewrite a pretty big part of history.
One of the biggest arguments against the flag is that some people think it violates their rights to have to look at it, when actually the First Amendment exists to protect speech and expression that is offensive above all other. It is your right to stand up and say, "Hey, I don't like it." The Constitution grants us the freedom of expression, not the freedom from expression. You also have the freedom to peacefully protest whatever it is that offends you. These rights are also granted to the people that say, "Hey, we like the flag and it isn't because we are trying to offend people."
I am from the south. My family has lived in the south since they came to America. That being said, it does not bother me one bit if southern states do not want to be directly associated with the Confederate flag anymore. But this doesn't mean that I don't want people to be able to fly it if they want to or be able to represent what they feel is their past and heritage.
The flag may offend some people, but if you removed everything that offended someone from public view in every manner, what would we really have left?
