The Confederate Flag was used by eleven states which seceded from the United States of America during the Civil War. These eleven states fought for slavery. Wouldn't that inherently make the Confederate Flag a symbol of racism?
To most intelligent people, yes, it would make the Confederate Flag a symbol of racism. There are many others who still fight for this flag, saying things like "It's our heritage." Well, Karen, what kind of heritage is that? It is one that involves SLAVERY.
I never understood why this was so hard for people to understand. Why would anyone have so much pride over something that lasted for such a short time and fought for slavery? Why would you be proud of a lost battle? These people fought for everything but freedom, which is a direct conflict with the rest of America's ideals.
The only possible explanation is this: they're racist. If you support the Confederate Flag, you are racist for all of the reasons stated above. It's plain, simple, and easy to understand. Someone in my family, who I won't name, actually outright stated that they were racist after telling me that they supported the Confederate Flag. They told me that they grew up in the "projects" and have been scared of black people because of the way they treated them and that black people "act differently." This, obviously, is not true. There are some pretty scary places where mostly white people live all over this country.
Do I think we should make the Confederate Flag illegal? Yes, because it is a hate symbol. It's similar to flying a flag with a swastika on it, which is ILLEGAL in Germany. Germany gets it. Why don't we?