Following the results of the 2012 Elections, the beautiful state of North Carolina is now being run by a Republican Governor, a Republican Senate and a Republican House. It is the first time this has happened in recent history of North Carolina.
With all branches of Government now in the hands of the Right Wing, the Southernization of North Carolina is now on the fast track. Lots of diaries have already reported on the changing face of North Carolina. Here are a few links about what's happening in North Carolina ... The Scaling back of Early Voting, The ideas of closing of some UNC Campuses, the 2 years waiting period on Divorce (from 1), the elimination of the Hispanic Outreach office, ... etc
What transpired this week in the NC Government is therefore not surprising.
The Confederate battle flag made its appearance in the old NC State Capitol and with the blessing of Governor Pat McCrory, the flag was expected to be around until 2015 ... the 150th anniversary of the arrival of federal troops in Raleigh.
Below is a picture of the old NC State Capitol showing the Confederate Flag, next to the USA Flag. Sessions of the General Assembly moved to a newer building a half-century ago, but the old Capitol building is still routinely used as a venue for official state government events. Governor McCrory’s office is on the first floor, as are the offices of his chief of staff and communications staff.
The Republican governor was in the House chamber where the Confederate flag hangs as recently as Thursday.
How does the right wing justify this decision? Here is what State Historic Sites Director Keith Hardison said:
“Our goal is not to create issues,” said Hardison, a Civil War re-enactor and history buff. “Our goal is to help people understand issues of the past. … If you refuse to put something that someone might object to or have a concern with in the exhibit, then you are basically censoring history.”
Prior to taking his current job in North Carolina in 2006, Hardison worked as director at the Mississippi home of Confederate President Jefferson Davis, which is operated as a museum and library owned by the Sons of Confederate Veterans. The group has led the fight in the South for the proud display of the Confederate flag, which it contends is a symbol of heritage, not hate
Of course lots of people were shocked. Including North Carolina NAACP president Rev. William Barber.
“He is right that it has a historical context,” Barber said. “But what is that history? The history of racism. The history of lynchings. The history of death. The history of slavery. If you say that shouldn’t be offensive, then either you don’t know the history, or you are denying the history.”
David Goldfield, a history professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and author of the book “Still Fighting the Civil War,” said the battle flag can hold starkly different meanings depending on a person’s social perspective.
“The history of the Confederate battle flag, how it was designed and formulated, how it has been used through the years, clearly states that it is a flag of white supremacy,” Goldfield said. “I know current Sons of Confederate Veterans would dispute that, saying ‘Hey, I’m not a racist.’ But the fact remains that the battle flag was used by a country that had as its foundation the protection and extension of human bondage.”
A decision was made by the Governor to end the display this week-end, rather than in April 2015. But people need to really wonder, how such a decision to hang this flag in a Government building was even made in the first place. What's the real goal of the people running the state Government in Raleigh? We must remain vigilant in North Carolina.