In the past couple of year, there has been a controversial battle over the flying of the Confederate Flag on government buildings. The controversy has really started to stir up in the southern states such as South Carolina, Mississippi, and Georgia. On January 30, 2001, the state of Georgia changed its flag, removing the large Confederate battle cross from the 1956 design and replacing it with the state seal of Georgia. Now, the state of Mississippi is the only state that fearlessly displays the Southern Cross in its state flag. Though several Southerners see the Confederate Flag as a symbol of southern pride and heritage, many others see the flag as a dishonorable reminder of slavery and segregation in the south. Although this flag is under great controversy in the southern states, there is no reason why this flag should fly from government buildings because it is demoralizes African Americans in the symbolization of slavery, segregation and domination and because it is used by many hate groups across the United States and the world. The Confederate Flag is a demoralizing symbol to many African Americans in the United States. To a number of African Americans, this flag is a symbol of slavery and the domination whites had over slaves during the time of the civil war. This flag is also a symbol of segregation between African Americans and whites in the south. African Americans feel that they have a right to fight for the banning of this flag from state government buildings. They argue that this flag should be banned because it represents bloodshed African Americans went through in slavery and it represents the exploitation of blacks, which is one of the most outrageous forms of oppression ever seen in United States' history. This flag is also a symbol of the White man's inconsideration of a person's feelings and sense of identity. Therefore, African Americans have good evidence to support their argument against the banning of the Confederate flag. When the Confederate flag is brought up in conversation, various Southerners will try to defend the fact that the flag stands for southern pride, heritage, and culture. Although these are all excellent ideas for which a flag should stand for, one must go deeper into who are the others who support this flag and for what reasons. Yes, it is obvious that many southerners support this flag, but so do the Ku Klux Klan and other hate groups. The Ku Klux Klan was a group that was organized by ex-Confederate elements to oppose the Reconstruction policies of the radical Republican Congress and to maintain "white supremacy." Even though this flag brings out some good qualities of the south, one might not want to be associated with the excess baggage that comes with this flag. To know that an individual supports a flag that is also synonymous with the Ku Klux Klan and countless hate groups around the world, may be the trigger for people to have a change of heart in having this flag banned or displayed in another fashion where everyone is not effected.
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