Yes, it probably is not really all that surprising for people who know history, that Mississippi was the last state that bore the Confederate battle flag symbol in the corner. It has been one of the Deep South states that notoriously has dragged it's feet on reforming racist traditions, along with Alabama and, to some extent, Louisiana. Racism never really went away anywhere in this country following the Civil Rights movement of the 1960's, but it seems that many people in the states that I just mentioned in particular seemed to cling to their racist traditions.
Louisiana tried to pass Jim Crow racist laws in 1965, the year after they were officially abolished across the nation. And Alabama and Mississippi have historically both really resisted any kind of reforms to end de facto white supremacy. So that is why it is not really surprising that Mississippi, specifically, hung onto a state flag that still bore the Confederate battle flag on it.
But that was lowered two days ago for the final time, after the state legislature passed a bill to change the flag. The governor signed it, and thus, once and for all, the last of the state flags depicting the Confederate battle flag passed into history.
Of course, this has come at a time when there are all sorts of divisions all across the country regarding racist symbols of the past. That includes, of course, statues of Confederate leaders, as well as men in history, such as Christopher Columbus and Charles IX and even George Washington. It also has seen buildings that were named after such figures being renamed. That has happened at two universities here in New Jersey, where the name of the state's one president, Woodrow Wilson, have been taken down because of his racism. And now, the state flag of Mississippi, which had long endured as a symbol of resistance against any kinds of changes like that, has now officially been abolished, and will soon be replaced with another flag.
No comments:
Post a Comment