The Battle Flag of the Army of North Virginia, more often simply referred to as the Confederate flag, has been at the center of contention ever since a white supremacist rampaged through Charlestonâs Emanuel AME Church just one month ago. This contention came to a head, though, during a rally to support the flag on July 18.
CONFEDERATE FLAG SUPPORTERS MOCKING AFRICAN-AMERICANS
It was June 29 when South Carolina officials granted a request from the Loyal White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan to hold a rally on Statehouse grounds in support of the Confederate flag. About one week prior to the rally, the Confederate flag was officially taken down from the grounds.
As you can see in this video, not everyone was excited about the turn of events.
If you fast forward in the video, you will see one of the KKK members giving the tried and true argument of why the flag isnât about hate:
âThe confederate flag is not about hate. It represents pride and heritage. A lot of people â a lot of my relatives â died for that flag.â
Weâve all heard that argument, and while it seems completely delusional considering that historical documents prove that the Civil War was about slavery â and the Confederate flag flew over those fighting to keep slaves â is it possible that this is a substantial claim?
Well, we hear the argument often enough, but let us look at some of the other statements thrown around by protesters that day.
âYou come right here and Iâll knock you on your black ass (expletive).â
And letâs not forget this one:
âHey I love the Colonel! The Colonel is the shit! I love Colonel Sanders.â
Hey, how about telling African-Americans itâs their fault they deal with racism because they didnât buy a ticket home after being freed from years of enslavement:
âThey set you free! Why didnât you go home? You reap what you sow!â
My absolute favorite, though, comes at about 45 seconds into the video. In addition to saying the following,
âYou drag your knuckles (expletive)!â
The ânon-racistâ Confederate flag supporter also made gorilla sounds and gestures directed at African-Americans gathered for a counter protest. And I apologize for the (expletive) insertions, those come directly from the uploader of the video. You can probably guess what they were saying, though.
Isnât it funny that the Ku Klux Klan uses the same exact arguments for flying the flag as the common, everyday, non-KKK, self-proclaimed ânot racistâ Confederate flag supporter? IntriguingâŠ