Confederate Flag Research Paper

The Confederate Flag is a demoralizing symbol to many African Americans in the United States. To a number of African Americans because they think this flag is a symbol of slavery and the domination whites had over slaves during the time of the civil war. This flag is

As Winston Churchill stated, “The flags of the Confederate States of America were very important and a matter of great pride to those citizens living in the confederacy. They are also a matter of great pride for their descendants as part of their heritage and history,” but in present day, the American people are claiming the meaning of the confederate flag is hate and discrimination. In South Carolina, the confederate flag was taken down and placed in a museum after a heated debate stemming from a mass shooting of nine black churchgoers in a historical Charleston church during bible study. The shooter, Dylann Roof, was a white supremacist. A photograph of Roof emerged showing him holding a confederate flag which fueled the political flag debate. The confederate flag is at the center of the controversy over racism. Although, it was first created as an official flag of confederacy, the confederate flag has changed into what is now either a symbol of Southern heritage and pride or slavery and racism by Americans. It is time to put this flag in a museum to be honored by those it means something to and no longer stand as a reminder of the division our country once suffered, so we can move on as a nation, united.

WATKINS GLEN (WENY) - After a gunman opened fired at a historic black church in Charleston, South Carolina, nearly two months ago, it sparked a conversation across the country over the symbolism of the Confederate Flag. That's because the man behind the crime was seen posing in pictures with the flag, which is also viewed by many as promoting racism, rather than Southern history. The debate prompted many industries to stop the sale of merchandise showing the Confederate Flag, including NASCAR.

The Confederate flag has been a topic of controversy in the United States for many years. It and other symbols of the Confederacy are parts of many state flags in the South and it is even flown at several state buildings throughout the South. To some the Confederate flag is a historical symbol and is believed to be a way of remembering the Civil War that almost tore the nation in two, but to others it represents fear and hatred due to its use by racial hate groups such as the Ku Klux Klan and it symbolizes the slave-holding South that existed prior to the Civil War. Such a controversial symbol should not be flown on state grounds, but also should not be forgotten. State lawmakers should remove the Confederate flag from state buildings and instead erect memorials remembering the Civil War that are jointly Union and Confederate, or museums remembering the war and honoring the thousands of soldiers that died during America’s bloodiest war.

The Confederate flag has been around since 1861, as a symbol of endless war, and detestation towards African Americans. Today, 154 years later, some states still incorporate the confederate flag into their state flags. The Confederate flag does not show progression in history, rather it is offensive to many groups and should be put to rest, because it does not promote unity in America. The Confederate flag holds America back and keeps our country stuck in the past.

Although the confederate flag was not originally created to be a hate symbol, it became one over the years. If there is any symbol or material item that offends a certain ethnic group, it can, and will most likely, be labeled as a racist insignia. When something goes as far as offending and restricting the rights of men and their equality, then it is racist and should not be tolerated to fly above a man’s home or dwelling. If an item such as the confederate flag plays such a significant role in history, it should be remembered in a museum. By putting it into a museum, it will be respected, not forgotten, and the people whose lives had been affected by the Confederate Flag are not in any situations where they feel scared, at risk of harm, inadequate or unequal; the people shall not be persecuted or feel as though they are being persecuted. The Confederate Flag should not fly amongst the people any longer. The past is the past.

About 150 years ago, the Civil War ended, and Reconstruction era began. African American slaves were free, but were looked at as different than everybody else. It wasn’t until the late 1950s and early 60s that African Americans finally felt equal to whites. Today, even though slavery and segregation has ended in the United States, racism is an extremely important topic. African Americans and people of other races are still facing the problems they did 100 years ago. One symbol of this is the Confederate flag. The Confederacy supported slavery, a now proclaimed ‘unconstitutional’ act. The Confederate flag is still being flown in some Southern states today, and they are offending thousands of United States citizens. The Confederate flag should be taken down in all public places because it represents a crude act of African American labor, it is used by white supremacist groups, and represents a rebellious group of people.

The Confederate flag has a huge and long history representing heritage and beliefs of the south. Today there has been a big debate whether this flag should be taken down or to let it fly. It has been told this flag represents slavery and racism amongst African Americans. Racism has rose to a new height since the civil rights movement and social media spreads it faster across the world. Although this flag represents merely heritage and sacrifice by many Americans even African Americans. The flag was to be created for a national flag during the civil war but was turned down. This flag is nothing but a symbol of heritage and pride like the national flag today.

On the other hand, the strongest argument for the confederate flag to continue flying above government buildings in the south has been voiced by former U.S. Representative of Georgia, Ben Jones. Congressman Jones argues that the confederate flag honors the lives of men who fought for the south during the civil war, and wants to preserve the symbolic flag for remembrance, not hate (Von Drehle, 2015). Jones’ argument is based on a view from a southern white man, a very narrow lens in American society

Many people are now asking the question “Should the United States ban the Confederate flag because of a shooting incident that is causing a ton of controversy. Yes the banning of the flag is a good reaction to the recent shooting that happened in South Carolina. The assailant wanted was trying to start a race war by murdering nine people while showing his confederate opinion. Many people still feel the pain of the past because the south justified what they did when they used the flag. While some people are celebrating if it comes down, others are protesting its removal. Many people still support the flag because of what it truly represented and not what people think it represents. The state’s decision to take down the flag is the right one, not only because of the shooting that happened, but also because of the history it carries.

Can the same flag that symbolizes southern heritage also be a symbol of hate? In 2015, a tragic shooting occurred at the Emanuel African Methodist Church in Charlestown, South Carolina. The Charleston shooter, Dylan Roof, was charged with killing nine African-Americans. After this horrible act, he waved the confederate flag in photographs sparking an issue with the flag. Two articles were released concerning whether or not the confederate flag should be removed from the South Carolina capitol. The first article, “Take Down the Confederate Flag, Symbol of Hatred”, was released by The New York Times editorial board on June 22, 2015. This article proposed that the flag should be removed. Following the release of this article, on June 24, 2015 “Keep the Confederate Flag Flying” was released by Selwyn Duke claiming the flag should remain. In these articles, both authors incorporated persona, audience, tone and style to effectively argue whether or not the flag should remain to Americans who may side with their argument.

The confederate flag is a big part of our nation. The confederate flag came to this world right after World War 1. Now there is a debate whether to take the flag down or keep it up. I believe we need to keep it up because it was peace that slavery was over. So I believe to keep it up so we will never forgot that time when there was slavery.

In Charleston, South Carolina during June of 2015, nine African-American church goers were murdered by a Caucasian young man, in what is now being called the Charleston Church Shooting. This murder has put new heat under an ongoing controversy over the Confederate flag, its symbolism, and brought debate over the flag to the forefront nationwide. In South Carolina, the House debate over removal of the flag from a Confederate monument at the Capitol Building picked up importance when pictures of the killer, posing with a Confederate flag, surfaced on the internet. The debate grew further in popularity nationwide, when Bree Newsom decided to scale the flag pole at the monument and remove the Confederate flag herself. Between the photos on the

For decades, there have been disputes over the presence of the Confederate flag over the South Carolina State House. Some felt that the flag represented the tradition and culture of their state, as South Carolina was the first to secede from the Union. However, many others thought it was a symbol of the inhumane treatment of millions of people before the abolishment of slavery. Since slavery was such a struggle for so many people, many others feel that it is strongly offensive. Joe Davidson, author for the Washington Post and the Federal Diary, described the flag as treasonous. The United States Constitution states, “Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying war against them” which is what happened during the Civil War.

The author mentioned that some citizens are still perturbed by the Confederate flag. While the number is slowly waning, many citizens were a part of the civil rights movement. They watched racist people protest against them using the flag as a symbol of racism, oppression, and hatred. To some, the flag may serve as a permanent reminder that racism is not truly dead in America.