Polling on the confederate flag

[Kurska]

https://today.yougov.com/news/2013/10/17/confederate-flag/

"YouGov research shows that while more Americans think that the Confederate flag is a symbol of Southern pride (35%) than think it is a symbol of racism (24%), there is a wide partisan divide in opinion. 43% of Democrats think that the Confederate flag is primarily a symbol of racism, while the majority of Republicans (56%) think that it is instead a symbol of Southern pride, and only 20% say that it is either both a symbol of Southern pride and racism (16%) or just racist (4%).

It is interesting to note that there is no major regional differences in terms of this symbolism, in stark contrast to the era when the Confederate flag originated. When asked if the Confederate flag stands for racism or Southern pride, 37% of people from the South answered Southern pride along with 34% of people who live in the North, 31% in the West, and 39% in the Midwest.

When asked whether or not it is right to display the Confederate flag in public places, many leaned towards disapproval (38%), or having no preference (34%). Only 20% of people said that they approve of displaying the Confederate flag in public places. Significantly, a majority of black Americans - 54% - disapprove of flying the confederate flag in public places, while only 12% approve."

Unsurprising really, there is a huge partisan and racial divide on the confederate battle flag (it was never the official flag of the confederacy).

Obviously if a private individual wants to fly it, that is their right, but I really think any official government agency ought to avoid doing so. It seems kind of ridiculous given it was a flag of rebellion against the very government those agencies purport to a part of.

Personally, I think the flag is flown both as a symbol of southern pride and as a symbol of racism, very often by the same people. I'm from the south myself, but I don't really feel any kind of affinity for the flag. In my experience the people who were enamored with it were the very type of people who you would do best to avoid.

[octoberlib]

1. Only 43% of Democrats?!

[Kurska]

2. 43% Think primarily a symbol of racism and 20% think it is equally souther pride and racism.

So 63% overall if you're being generous.

[octoberlib]

3. i live in NC , am originally from the midwest and I've never

understood the whole southern pride thing. I think the south has a self esteem problem.

[geek tragedy]

13. They've been bringing up the rear in terms

of social progress for 200+ years.

And at some level they recognize that the north has had to drag them out of the dark ages, often at gunpoint. Which is tough to process.

[brush]

4. It's the symbol of defeated, treasonous rebellion against the union . . .

that fought to keep human beings enslaved.

Nothing else needs to be said except get rid of it and the people championing it should be ashamed for their support of treason.

[Kurska]

5. I'm not a big believer in keeping people in countries that don't want to be a part of.

If not for slavery I would have thought it tyrannical for other states to keep a state in the union through force of arms. Obviously the crux of the war was slavery and a people don't have a right to enslave other people and the war was justified on those grounds.

But if say tomorrow New Hampshire had a referendum on leaving, I think it would be ridiculous if the government rolled in with tanks to stop them. That would be crazy. If a majority of people want to leave a political union they ought to be able to. I mean, would you be cool with that?

[brush]

6. You know that the south started the war right?

As I said, that flag is a symbol of treason. It should come down.

[Kurska]

8. Of course I do, I said the war war justified because they were fighting to keep their slaves.

Did you actually bother reading my post? I said if it wasn't for slavery, which again was the entire point of the war, I wouldn't think it was right to keep people in a political union they didn't want to be a part of.

If there was some grand consensus in Washington State to want to leave the union and they did so via a democratic process, would you support force of arms to against the state to stop them? Again the problem was slavery, not the fact they wanted to leave.

[brush]

11. Maybe that makes sense to you some how in an off-topic way . . .

but we're talking about whether a flag which symbolizes a treasonous rebellion should come down.

[Kurska]

14. The problem isn't that it is "treasonous" the problem is that it is racist, is my point. EOM

[brush]

16. Of course it's racist. The fact that it represents treason is overlooked too often.

The flag's supporters seem to be proud of it's racist, white supremist symbolism that's why I like to point out that the confederates were traitors, failed traitors at that.

[struggle4progress]

7. Few Americans like Confederate flag, but it still flies in South

Just 1 in 10 Americans have a positive reaction when they see the Confederate flag, according to a 2011 Pew Research Center study ...

https://www.bostonglobe.com/news/nation/2015/06/19/few-americans-like-confederate-flag-but-still-flies-south-carolina/AMFqXUXb9DggMWg8j3vLpM/story.html

[a la izquierda]

15. I see it at least once a day here in WV...

whether it be on some coal-rolling pick up truck or a piece of crap jalopy, a t-shirt, or a window. It's everywhere. Same when I lived in Oklahoma. I don't recall seeing it much in NJ as a kid growing up, but I'm sure they're out there.
It lets me know who the assholes are, but it also makes me want to retch.

[LuvNewcastle]

9. I basically agree with you.

What individuals do with the flag is their business, but it really has no place on public property, unless we're talking about an exhibit in a museum.

My town faced a controversy about the battle flag back in the 90's. This area has seen 8 different flags fly over it since colonization. There was a movement to remove the battle flag from our monuments, and Biloxi came up with a good solution. They had the battle flag removed and replaced it with a historically correct Confederate flag. This flag isn't a racist symbol, yet it placates the people who want their 'heritage' remembered. Now, if we can just figure out a way to get the battle flag removed from the Miss. state flag...

[kentuck]

10. To every thing there is a season...

It is time to bring down the "rebel" flag. It was a flag of rebellion. Many ancestors in the South thought it was cool to carry on the "rebel" tradition. They did not look at it as a symbol of racism. But, indeed, that is what it was to many fellow Americans.

As time has gone by, it has become more a symbol or racism than a symbol of rebellion. Those that carry it are not "rebellious" youth - they are racists. It is time to bring it down.

[geek tragedy]

12. Pride in Southern treason and white supremacism.

Since that is the foundation of Dixiephilia.