What do you do with a historic symbol that hurts?
Speaking as a product of the semi-South (we thought the Missouri Ozarks was the center of the universe — not particularly Southern but certainly not Northern, either), I grew up with the Confederate flag, and I can remember occasionally hanging one in my room as a kid. At the time (I was a kid, remember), I thought the flag stood for rebellion, a theme I could embrace.
But then I grew up and met people for whom the flag said nothing about rebellion and everything about racism and classsism and other -isms that we should be over by now. I couldn’t in good conscience hang onto that flag, which flew over at least some of my relatives during the Civil War. I figured there were other symbols for rebellion that aren’t nearly so hurtful. Read a good history of the discussion here.
I live in the unabashed North now, and when I see a Confederate flag in these parts I am always brought up short. You can often find them as decals on the back of a truck, and when I see a truck so adorned I always try to see who’s driving. No, this is not a scientific survey, but by and large, the drivers are young white men. And I want to pull them over and ask, “Why the flag?” – not to get all mean or anything, but I really want to know.
In my religious upbringing, the cross was a powerful symbol, too, but we weren’t allowed to wear it as jewelry because the real cross was so much more and reducing it to an earring or a charm on a chain was considered gauche to the extreme.
So I don’t cling to a lot of symbols and that probably doesn’t help when I wonder why others do. If the symbol is there to represent something bigger, does that something bigger need the representation? Just askin’.
AP photo
Now that I am home on the outskirts of the Capitol of the Confederacy, i feel a little safer commenting on this.
Pickup owners, from my experience, tend toward the conservative side. Younguns, like my son, who drive pickups seem to band together. For instance, at school the boy parks in “Redneck Row” – it is where all the truck-drivin’, baseball-playin’, huntin’ and fishin’ guys park.
Rebel flags are not uncommon, especially on belt buckles.
Of course, down here this not surprising. The War of Northern Aggression is not over, the South is simply resting. ;-)
Actually, it really seems to be more of identity thing. These young men (and women too – GRITS – Girls Raised In The South) are all looking for something to belong to that is both rebellious and accepted. Many folks here have redefined (in my opinion) what the Confederacy and the Civil War was about. It may be more accurate to say that they simply focus on some very positive aspects of Southern culture. Anyhow, the rebel flag is a symbol that goes not only with the war, but also Lynyrd Skynyrd, the Larry the Cable Guy, and other modern icons of pop culture.
Parents justify it to me as being no different than black kids wearing MLK or Malcom X t-shirts.
While I find the rebel flag to be unpalatable, I also find it amusing as I translate as:
Look at me! I’m a Rebel! I’m unique and special…just like everybody else with this sticker/flag/belt buckle.
Final rambling note: maybe these are the same people who bought pet rocks?