The Confederate Flag Dispute
The start of the Confederate flag controversy was due to the request of the NAACP to remove the flag off of South Carolina’s Statehouse. This request is based on the fact that they, the anti-flag groups, claim that the meaning of the Confederate flag is one of hate and discrimination. On the other hand, there are other groups that believe differently whom are called the pro-flag groups. They claim that the flag is a sign of heritage and should stay on the Statehouse. Liberals tend to be in the favor of the anti-flag groups, and conservatives are more likely to be supporting pro-flag groups. Both sides use evidential logos to prove their arguments, and pathos to show how wrong the other side is.
Eric
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In the first paragraph he mostly provides the background with claims made by pro-flag groups of the reason why the flag should stay flying. Foner writes, “the Confederate flag, they tell us, represents not slavery but local identity, a way of life and respect for “heritage”(par. 1). He uses the claims made by the pro-flag groups against them by making them sound unbelievable. “Some defenders of the flag go so far as to paint the pre-Civil War South as a multicultural paradise…”(Foner par. 1).
Foner believes that the main cause of the Civil War was the south’s opposition to freeing slaves. He believes that slavery was the big reason why the Civil War was started and that all of the other issues stemmed off of it. He then uses logos by explaining how the Declaration of the Immediate Causes of Secession shows evidence of this in its causes of secession. “To understand what the flag now flying in Columbia represents, one need only read the Declaration of Immediate Causes of Secession, adopted by South Carolina secession convention in December 1860”(Foner par. 2). Foner gives some examples of the declaration being about slavery by quoting some things it stated, and one quotation out of the Declaration of Immediate Causes of Secession is about Lincoln being a man “whose opinions and purposes are hostile to slavery.” This quote proves that South Carolina was seceding because of Lincoln’s negative ideas about slavery. He adds also the
In “Keep the Confederate Flag Flying”, Selwyn Duke’s persona is informative. He wants to appeal to the southern states in America. Therefore, the intended audience is the southerners that will stand with him in keeping the confederate flag flying. The tone of this article is somewhat serious, as he is trying to convince others to help with his cause. The tone is shown when Selwyn Duke said, “As you know, one criminal who committed a heinous act had sometimes sported the symbol, so the thinking…er, feeling…goes, it should be sent to cultural Siberia. But the flag should remain—especially right now” (Duke 1). This quote also introduces his persuasive style he uses to convince the people to do whatever they can to keep the flag
It gave examples of why the flag had to be changed so many times and how the war even started. The article also talked about what the flag meant to the soldiers during and after the war. The author also talked about the way the Confederate flag affected people and their beliefs. The source was recently written and the author has written many book reviews about events in history, especially wars. He also used many visual aids throughout the article that had captions that explained what they are to help the reader understand the information better.
We all have heard the romantic story of our flag. How Betsy Ross sat in her living room all night, sewing together the stars and stripes. Today, Betsy’s masterpiece still flies high all around our country, but, in many of the southern states, there is a second flag that flies with it. The Confederate flag. The birth story of this war flag is not romantic in any shape or form. During the Civil War, there was much confusion on the battlefield between the original Confederate flag, “Stars and Bars”, and our “Stars and Stripes”. So the leaders of the Confederates had their Committee on the Flag and Seal create a totally different flag to use for the battlefield, and they would use their original flag for parades. Hence, the birth of the Confederate
Pro-Confederates argue that the flag we have come to know as the Confederate flag is not the same flag as the one flown on Confederate battle fields. While it is true that the flag we see today wasn’t the official flag of the Confederate states, it was flown by several Confederate Army units, including Robert E. Lee’s unit (Brumfield). After the end of the Civil War, the Confederate flag largely disappeared, but made its comeback during the Civil Rights movement. According to Malik Miah, a reporter for Solidarity, the Confederate flag was flown at the South Carolina state capitol beginning in 1962 in defiance of the Civil Rights movement (Miah). The flag had flown at the South Carolina state capitol ever since – until now. Other defenders of the Confederate flag say that the flag is merely a symbol of the heritage of the area and the sacrifice of veterans who died defending it (Lagarde). However, the history of African-American racism and the Southern heritage are intimately intertwined. Looking at the Confederate flag brings feelings of prejudice, discrimination, and
The flag represented the confederate soldiers who were in support of slavery during civil war. Even after the confederates lost, they still continued to display the flag. During the Post-Reconstruction Era, people who carried the flag around were often linked to the same people who attacked and harassed African Americans. Supporters of the flag justify the flag by using the phrase, “heritage not hate.” Anyone who has taken history would understand that the confederate flag represents hate and racism and not “heritage.”
Many people believe the Confederate Flag is a symbol of racism, and a symbol of people wanting to break away from the already great rights we have today in America.
The controversy of the showing of the confederate flag is something huge. You have the bunch that does not like the flag, and then there is the group of individuals the support and fly the flag with pride. There are five states that have laws, in their own state, that state it is illegal to burn or deface the confederate flag. On surface, these state laws would seem to conflict the 5-4 decision made by the Supreme Court in Texas v. Johnson. The controversial case in 1989 that held up the burning the flag as an act of protected free speech. (As it is stated under the First Amendment.)
The American South. An area full of rich history and the home to some of the nation’s largest conflicts throughout history, such as the civil war and the civil rights movement. Southerners have always been proud of their heritage despite its rocky parts and display it for all to see with a 150 year old flag. This is proving to be problematic, though, as the Confederate flag they are all so proud of, is really only 50 years old and has been associated with ideals of white supremacy and racism. Some Southerners and other Americans choose to not believe the truth about the flag, others were never taught the truth. However, it is incredibly important in forming an opinion on the flag, and to whether or not the flag must be removed from state buildings. And the truth is, due to its historical affiliation to racist whites in the South, white supremacy groups, and recent events such as the Charleston Shooting, the Confederate rebel flag should not be flown on state buildings as it is not culturally sensitive to African American people who have been targeted by these people.
Tensions between the North and South had grown steadily since the anti slavery movement in 1830. Several compromises between the North and South regarding slavery had been passed such as the Nebraska-Kansas and the Missouri act; but this did little to relieve the strain. The election of President Lincoln in 1861 proved to be the boiling point for the South, and secession followed. This eventually sparked the civil war; which was viewed differently by the North and the South. The Northern goal was to keep the Union intact while the Southern goal was to separate from the Union. Southern leaders gave convincing arguments to justify secession. Exploring documents from South Carolina’s secession ordinance and a speech from the Georgia
Morals. Everyone has them, although they may differ. It is taught to us when we are young children to always be polite and kind to others. Yet adults, those who are supposed to be the most mature, show less humanity than children, and go out of their way to offend other people. The Confederate Flag for example. It is shown on cars and flying outside of buildings, but what is the point? Those flaunting the flag must know that others may take offense to it. The Confederate Flag is symbolic of a racist past and should be banned from public places because hate groups have adopted it and weaponized the flag to create division and oppression.
Many people still feel the tension in the air when they talk about the Confederate flag. For many people it symbolizes a time filled with hate and oppression. The South used this symbol as what backed them in the civil war. They left the United States as a whole because they did not like the talk of slaves being free. Nowadays it is a symbol just like the swastika, it originally never meant anything bad or hurtful, but a single idea changed that. When the south used it to justify why they fought it tarnished its original meaning completely. People all across the country are supporting its removal; even big companies are changing their
Recently there has been a big debate over the nation for the flying confederate flag.Is the confederate flag a true symbol of “Heritage or Hate”? Many states in America’s south had the confederate flag as a part of their state flag, but this has been changed over the past few months. The confederate flag has been known and flown for many battles over the past century and a half, which was ever since thebeginning of the Civil War in 1861. Some people today see this flag as a symbol of hatred and are willing to get rid of it by taking it down. On the other hand,some people see this flag as a symbol of American history and want to keep this flag flying for heritage. The real question is who is right and why?
The Confederate Flag is the symbol for the Southern state in the Civil War. It is not just pieces of material. The flag represent families and where they came from. Flags have been a part of history since the beginning of time and the Confederate flag is a large part of the United States history. People need to learn what the flag has represented. The true meaning. Not what they think the flag has represented. Teaching the meaning of the Confederate flag needs to start in the schools with young children. Without knowing the true history and meaning of the Confederate flag the war over the flag may never stop. People cannot change history by removing a flag from a pole, it is history and history will never change. Society can move forward by educating people on the Confederate flag and change the way future generations view this traditional symbol of the South.
The opposing side wants us to listen and not worry about the flag just the information to support why it is not racist. When thinking of the flag it is important to keep in mind that the Confederate Battle Flag was just a battle flag and nothing more. The Confederate Battle Flag was never a National flag, so it could have never for slavery. The opposing side says that this is continued by a lack of education and ignorance people. The people that criticize the Confederate Battle Flag have to be misinformed about the history behind the Confederate flag and have simply joined in an on wrong information that is not completely true at all. The KKK known as the Ku Klux Klan has used the United States of America's flag more than the Confederate Battle Flag itself. The racist organization such as the KKK have taken a good symbol of history, and have misled the south that the Confederate flag is a racist symbol and that they stand behind the idea of it. They just want the good memories of the great Confederate Soldiers that fought under the flag would not be happy with their racist plans of it. In no possible way does the Confederate Flag represents hate or violence at all. SCV which stands for Sons of Confederate Veterans is a historic long time group that has tried to fight the dirt that has been put on the Confederate flag for being a racist symbol of history that has been brought about by the horrible organizations. The group really does not promote any type of hate groups, they proudly only promote the history behind the Confederate Flag and that’s all. The group till this day still tries to continue to educate the public to withstand the good reputation of the Confederate soldiers and make me realize that the Confederate soldiers went to fight for the country as a whole, not just one individual
After a 15-hour legislative debate, South Carolina voted to remove the Confederate flag from Statehouse. Millions watched as the flag came down on Friday, marking a milestone in how America commemorates the war that tore the nation apart.