"Marginalized Southerners" Display "World's Largest" Confederate Flag
At the same time the nation is prepared to see its first black major presidential nominee, a strange, parallel universe exists in Hillsborough County, Florida. The Sons of Confederate Veterans are now flying the "world’s largest" Confederate flag at one of the nation’s busiest intersections in Tampa.
The Tampa Tribune reports the flag was raised on Tuesday at the junction of Interstate 75 and U.S. 92 to celebrate "Confederacy President Jefferson Davis’ birthday" and was taken down the same evening. At a county commission meeting last night, officials discovered they cannot legally prohibit the gigantic flag and pleaded with the group to voluntarily not display it and avoid inflaming racial tensions. That doesn't appear likely. "Plans call for the flag to be part of a Confederate memorial scheduled to be dedicated April 26, Confederate Memorial Day, and, a spokesman for the groups says 'we're pretty firm in our resolve.' "
This morning on FOX News, Marion Lambert of the Sons group says, "Southerners have been marginalized for the last 20-25 years" and feigned ignorance about the flag’s divisive history and role in slavery, Jim Crow and white supremacy. Video at Think Progress.
Local black citizens have "threatened an economic boycott and protests that could sully the county’s image as the nation focuses on Tampa in January as the site of the Super Bowl."
"You lost, get over it", maybe we need a bumper sticker that says that. I'm just sayin.
Posted by: Reality Check | 05 June 2008 at 18:07