Confederate Flag? Pride or hate...

A thought:

Growing up in the south, one is almost indoctrinated into having a sense of pride in the heritage of the Confederacy. The display of the Confederate flag is prevalent in southern society. While sometimes I might be able to buy the mantra "Pride not hate" in terms of what a person may think they are saying with this statement, the fact remains that the root cause of the Civil War was over the abolition of slavery, a dark stain on the history of our country. Some may be overtly racist in their idolatry of the Confederacy and its symbols, but I am afraid less malicious people fail to recognize the magnitude of celebrating this heritage 'innocently.'

Take into account the Holocaust and the atrocities committed under Nazi rule in Germany. While this may be a more extreme example, imagine that certain regions in Germany periodically celebrated the ideals of Nazi government (excluding the persecution of an entire race), had battleground reenactments, and people openly displayed the nazi flag, wore it on their shirt, marketed flip-flops and hats with the flag on it, etc. While some or all of these things may actually happen, think about how the world would view such celebration of their 'heritage.' Now think about what such admiration in our country has to say about our morals and values (not to mention that one rarely sees a black person displaying the symbol of the confederacy, at least not as a source of 'pride').

While I leave it up to others to decide which is worse, the extermination of a race of people or the enslavement and denial of rights to a race of people, the conclusion I have come to is this: decorating your valuables, property, or yourself with a Confederate Flag is akin to doing the same with a Nazi flag.

The end.