March 17, 2000
The Flag of Pefeaf
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Jacob Noble
STARR WRITER
There are many that rally
and support the Confederate
flag. To Southern sympathizers
it is a symbol of what was, and
what they never could be. But
to those, especially in South
Carolina, who say that the flag
is not a symbol of racism but a
symbol of speech are not paying
heed to its history.
Both the Confederate flag
and the Confederacy are sym
bols of slavery; this is a fact that
those who support the flag must
realize and pay attention to.
Between the years of 1830 and
1860, 300 white people, all of
whom resided in the Confed
eracy, were lynched because
they opposed slavery. Their
only crime was speaking out
against slavery and though
their freedom of speech was fed
erally mandated, it was in direct
opposition to the Confederacy's
livelihood: slavery.
Looking back in history,
one knows that part of the rea
son for the Civil War was due
to the slave-holding states and
their desire to expand slavery
into the territories and Cuba.
This was Southern pride. This
was Southern heritage. This
was Southern culture. This was
marked with a Confederate flag.
A Northern army defeated all
this.
Those who support the
Confederate flag fail to consider
many of the issues related to its
history. Many cite pride and
heritage in the flag and their an
cestors who fought to maintain
the Southern way of life. Going
on this reasoning, should Ger
many allow the Nazi flag to fly
over some of their government
buildings because people have
relatives who fought and died
for them? If one uses this anal
ogy to the South then the an
swer seems clear. No.
There are many in the
South who pose the argument
that the Confederate flag is no
more racist or intolerable for
justice then the American flag.
This may be so, but a justifica
tion for an injustifice is not a jus
tification.
It is time for Southerners,
or should I say Americans, to re
member that like it or not the
Union won, fair and square.
It should be expressly
noted that part of the terms of
surrender were that the soldiers
would "deposit their flags." This
agreement was even agreed to
by the South's own hero, Robert
E. Lee. The flags had been de
posited until groups such as the
KKK and neo-Nazis decided to
use the Confederate flag as a
rallying cry for their "troops."
A pro-segregationist group, the
Dixiecrats, lead by the governor
of Mississippi, used the flag in
defiance of Truman. In 1962,
South Carolina decided to hang
the Confederate flags as a direct
counter-attack on the Civil
Rights Movement.
For those who argue that
the flag is not racist, I pose the
following question. Can you
name one activity that has oc
curred ever in our nation's his
tory when both black and white
people rallied around the Con
federate flag, all in the name of
America?
The fact is the Confederate
flag was, and still is, a symbol
of the Confederacy and, more
importantly, a symbol of defeat.
Union soldiers fought and died
so that the flag of the Union —
not the Confederacy—would fly
over every state in the Union.
When Robert E. Lee conceded
defeat and surrendered at
Appomattox he made a promise
to salute one flag and align him
self with our nation, America.
The Confederate flag is a
symbol of failed insurrection,
one which every eighth-grade
U.S. History class discusses.
While many died for the Confed
eracy, there were many more
who fought for the Union. For
those who rally around this flag,
they must remember that there
were millions who served and
were treated as less than hu
man, who were counted as 3/sths
and, even worse, not even con
sidered citizens but merely
identified as chattel. No mat
ter how strong one's ties are to
a way of life, the ties of bondage
that resulted because of this flag
should never, under any circum
stances, be celebrated.
AARON THOMPSON
The Guilfordian
Forum
You're not a racist,
Charlie Brown
By Daniel Fleishman
STAIT WRITER
In very recent days, Charles
Schulz ended his tenure as the es
teemed chieftain of the syndicated
cartoon world—a world in which
only appropriate chords are
picked, ethical messages sent, and
clean fun had. I believe that
Schulz's creation, the "Peanuts"
cartoon, can serve as a role model
for any humane person, and can lift
up from despair the most tried of
souls through the simple rhetoric
of his beloved crew of lifelike char
acters. His style remains unique
to this day: a touching of hearts
through the commonplace agonies
of Charlie Brown, Snoopy, and the
rest of the distinguished gang.
Ah, bliss. Our (scarily
cartoonish) world is at peace with
itself and we humans (its most in
telligent habitants) love each
other dearly. There exists no
pain, no fighting, no unjust bias.
All is so marvelously well'.
Except for all the racists.
Especially those who roam
free at Guilford.
Especially those who openly
use racist language with no
thought of who might be within
earshot.
Especially when the guilty
parties have no clue, from sheer ig
norance, that the words are offen
sive.
My fellow peaceable schol
ars, there exist among us devil
ish fiends who use derogatory
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March 25, 9:15 a.m. j
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words in everyday conversation,
words that truly offend others.
Frankly, I cannot repeat what was
said without appearing as a
hypocrite. But I assure you that
the words were extremely offen
sive.
These racists remind me of
the Confederacy, the Ku Klux
Klan, and Hitler. These people
live among us, and it scares me.
On a campus as equality-con
scious as Guilford's, how can we
so blindly miss those who are so
openly wicked?
Charlie Brown failed at just
about everything he ever did, but
for sure he offended his
friends with appalling racist
slurs.
I witnessed two separate rac
ist remarks in the past few
months, and at neither time did
those people care about my feel
ings, or the feelings of other by
standers. How can Guilford Col
lege help rid itself of this problem?
How can these people be weeded
out? I wish I knew the answers.
Charles Schulz died the night
before his last cartoon ran in news
papers across the world, and with
him went a sense of moral Tight
ness, love, and many other impor
tant characteristics that are miss
ing in a surprising number of
people. His work demonstrated
his understanding of the limits of
which feelings you should suppress
and which you should display.
Keep an open ear and carefully
correct those who make such mis
takes.
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