Lowering the " Stars and Bars " !

It seems strange a hundred and fifty years after the end of the American Civil war the flag of the losing side still flies over the Statehouse of South Carolina, the first state to secede from the Union.  That war raged from 1861 to 1865 and the first shots were fired in South Carolina when the Confederacy fired on Fort Sumter.

This war was probably inevitable because America's north and south developed very different economies.  The north was a manufacturing economy while the south excelled at agriculture - and specially tobacco and cotton.  This was labour intensive and relied on slave traders raiding villages in Africa and capturing black men, women and children for transport to America to be sold by public bidding in the slave markets.  That war decided the issue of slavery and the eleven states that formed the Confederacy were forced to surrender in 1865.

Freedom means different things to different people. While southern former slaves were no longer owned by their masters, rigid restrictions remained.  They were denied the vote and this after war era saw the white robed Ku Klux Klan impose it's code of order on the black community - in what came to be called the "Jim Crow " order of segregation.   This " White Supremacy " ethos signalled it's presence by the inclusion of the stars and bars of the Confederacy flag on public buildings, on car number plates and often on the label of manufactured goods.

South Carolina has now ordered the Confederate flag to be lowered on the Statehouse and removed to a civil war museum after a white teenager used it as a symbol of his wish to start a new race war when he shot and killed nine black worshippers in a historic black church.   Major American shopping chains have announced they will no longer sell merchandise bearing the Confederate flag and there are moves by other former Confederate states to drop this symbol from car registration plates.

Taking the flag from public disclosure by legislation will do little to change the view on white/black relations held by those whose outlook has remained unchanged since 1865.  There is even the likelihood that it may gain new life as the symbol of hate groups, just as the swastika is still revered by neo-Nazi adherents of National Socialism still lingering in Germany.  The difference is that anyone openly flying the swastika in Germany would find themselves quickly incarcerated in a prison.

That church shooting elevated the Confederate flag to a hate symbol that probably only existed in very few minds.   To many others it was a nostalgic memory of how many thought of the "old south " -  somewhat romantically of great plantations and a social way of life as extolled in the movie "Gone with the Wind ".  There is an ever present danger that in banning something, we simply elevate it as a symbol around which a new form of hate festers.

It is worth remembering that Australia had an armed rebellion in 1854 when angry gold miners objected to the authorities tripling the license to dig for gold to three pounds per month and sent police on regular rounds to inspect valid licenses.   This led to what became called the "Eureka Stockade " when armed miners clashed with British soldiers, leaving 27 dead.  The battle was fought under the Eureka flag, which depicted the Southern Cross - which is a constellation in this hemispheres sky.

This Southern Cross is now the emblem of protest.  In particular, it has been adopted by the most militant trade unions but it is also a favourite depiction of what is Australian in sport and where national fervor arises.   It would be unthinkable to ban it because it once was hoisted above a historic battle scene.  The miners may have lost that "war " but the Southern Cross is now a universal symbol with wide meaning.  It is simply an integral part of the Australian culture.

Time will tell how this move to banish the Confederate flag evolves.   The fact that it was adopted by a young man with hatred towards coloured people has elevated it to a notoriety that it doesn't deserve.
That church shooting has reinforced the link between the Confederate flag and slavery.  A month ago it flew on flag poles virtually unnoticed.   Now - the very sight of it will send many people into tirades of rage.     The end result may be the exact opposite of what was intended !