TNS/South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley hugs U.S. Congressman James Clyburn after she called for legislators to remove the Confederate flag from the grounds of the Statehouse.
South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, speaking five days after the murder of nine African-Americans in a Charleston church, said it’s time to remove the Confederate flag from Statehouse grounds. “We are not going to allow this symbol to divide us any longer,” she proclaimed.
More than two dozen officials joined Haley when she spoke at a press conference in the lobby of the Statehouse in Columbia, South Carolina. The governor called on the Legislature to pass legislation to remove the flag and said she would demand a special session to do so if it doesn’t act this summer. It will take an act of the Legislature to remove the Confederate flag.
Haley’s remarks are just part of a growing tide of opposition against the Confederate flag. Wal-Mart has announced that it will cease selling any goods with the flag on them. Other national retailers, including Amazon, Sears Holdings and eBay, said they would also join the boycott.
Even NASCAR issued a statement supporting Haley’s position and said that it will “continue our long-standing policy to disallow the use of the Confederate flag symbol in any official NASCAR capacity.” Sounding more than a little pompous, the statement continued: “While NASCAR recognizes that freedom of expression is an inherent right of all citizens, we will continue to strive for an inclusive environment at our events.”
Oh, goody.
Reince Priebus, the chairman of the Republican National Committee, attended Haley’s press conference and issued a statement afterward supporting her position. “This flag has become too divisive and too hurtful for too many of our fellow Americans,” Preibus said. “Now is the time to do what is right,” he said.”
Meanwhile, governors in four Southern states joined the chorus and said they want images of the Confederate flag removed from license plates in their state. Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, a Democrat, echoed demands of three Republican governors — Larry Hogan of Maryland, Pat McCory of North Carolina and Bill Haslam of Tennessee — in demanding the change. McAuliffe said it was time to make it clear “that this commonwealth does not support the display of the Confederate battle flag or the message it sends to the rest of the world.”
The governors’ statements follow a ruling last week by the Supreme Court that a state could refuse to put the flag on license plates. The ruling reversed a decision by the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that said specialty license plates were a “public forum” and that, therefore, a state couldn’t discriminate based on content.
Legislation has already been introduced in South Carolina to remove the Confederate flag from the Statehouse. Supporters of the measure expressed confidence that the measure will receive the two-thirds majority needed in both branches to pass the measure.
In Mississippi, Philip Gunn, the speaker of the House there, said it’s time to remove the emblem from the state flag. Mississippi is the last remaining state to include the Confederate flag on its banner.
What about all those folks for whom the Confederate flag is not a symbol of bitterness, hatred or division? In a widely quoted column, Frank Berry wrote in Bloomberg View, “Those who believe that the Confederate flag stands for Southern honor and nobility need not cede their case.” But then he added:
They need only acknowledge that the African-American community’s discomfort with that flag is understandable and, in the wake of this tragedy, likely to grow. They need only put the pain of others ahead of their own pride.
So shame on you if you’re not ready to join the chorus saying, “Take it down, take it down.” The message now is it’s time to go along to get along. And you’ll feel better if you do so.
Until next time, keep some powder dry.
–Chip Wood
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