It’s a symbol of our heritage - good and bad
Mr Moore’s comments are misguided at best and reflect his broad ignorance of the flag issue in general.
As an American born and raised in the south, I wish to point out that the Confederate flag does not represent the issues he assumes.
There is no flag in the world that represents a completely innocent people. Is the Irish flag completely without stain? Of course not. And the American flag? Again, no.
America spent many years brutally eradicating the native tribes while waving the Stars and Stripes - not the Stars and Bars. Black soldiers were an integral part of this process.
Our flag, to the southerner, simply represents our heritage, good and bad. Our civil war was not about slavery. It was about the rights of individual states. The truth is that the southern states legally withdrew from the union and were promptly invaded by armies from the north to preserve their control over our economy.
If the south was so bad, why did free blacks stay here after the war? Does Mr Moore know that there were thousands of blacks who volunteered and fought for the Confederacy? Does he know that the first Union officer killed in the first battle was shot by a black Confederate?
He seems more interested in political correctness than in facts. I have travelled to many countries and all around my own.
There is no place I know of that has less racism than the southern United States. Would it be fair to Mr Moore for me ignorantly to equate his SWP with the Nazis or Stalin’s regime? I challenge him to prove me wrong and demand an apology for his attack on my culture.
Chris Armstrong
908 Mayfield Drive
Manchester
Tennessee 37355
USA
