Being a Civil War Reenactor for the Union, I should be against the Confederate Flag, my boys fight in blue, not grey. However, being a Civil War Reenactor, you have to have a love for the war, what you do, and of course you have to do your research.
Here is why I believe Americans deserve to be able to fly the Confederate Flag freely:
The Confederate flag went through three flags during the four-year Civil War. None of them being the battle flag that is at the center of current controversy. First came the Stars and Bars, next was the Stainless banner and lastly was the Blood Stained Banner. The Rebel flag that is at the current center of controversy is Robert E Lee’s battle flag.
The Stars and Bars was flown from 1861 to 1863. Like its Union sibling it had a dark blue field in the upper left corner, only 3 stripes, two red and one white and seven stars to represent the breakaway states. The breakaway states consisted of; South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, and Texas. The soldiers had a very hard time telling the difference between the Rebel flag and the Union flag on the smoke filled battlefield so PGT Beauregard wanted something different.
Politician William Porcher Miles came up with a blue St. Andrew’s cross with white stars on a blue field in the top left corner of the flag. This second flag was called the Stainless Banner and was used from 1863 to 1865. Here came a problem, when the wind wasn’t blowing, you couldn’t see the blue field in the upper left corner. All you could see was the white flag which was a flag of surrender. A red stained stripe was added to the far right end of the flag and was later named the Blood Stained Banner. This third and final flag was used in 1865 until the south surrendered in April of 1865.
The current flag that is at the center of controversy right now is Robert E Lee’s battle flag which was flown by several Confederate army regiments. Most notable of those regiments was Robert E Lee’s army of the Northern Virginians. After the war had ended the battle flag had only turned up here and there to commemorate fallen soldiers.
The Confederate states only had slavery for 4 years, 1861 to 1865 while America had slavery for 76 years under our current flag, 1789 to 1865. This flag at the center of controversy was never flown over states with slavery. This flag was the battle flag used by southern army regiments. Why would you take down this battle flag that has absolutely nothing to do with slavery but to show southern pride and the people that died fighting for the south, but not take down the American flag that was flown over slave states for 76 years?
The Confederate flag deserves to be flown freely, as does the American Flag. This flag was not “racist”. Just because a slave owner may have flown this flag to support or remember his father, son, or brother fighting in a southern army regiment or killed fighting in this terrible war, doesn’t make the flag “racist.” This is no different than flying the American Flag.
We fly the American flag to show people that we are proud to be Americans, southerners fly the Confederate flag to show people that they are proud of their heritage. We fly this flag to support our troops and remember the troops that gave their lives to keep us safe, Southerners fly the Confederate flag to support the men who fought and gave their lives during the Civil War. We fly this flag proudly, as should Southerners be able to fly their flag proudly.
