Let me open by saying that nobody could feasably argue for the wretched institution of slavery, nor should they. It was a black mark on our history, one that will never be repeated.
However, I feel that columnist Julie Muhlstein was not completely informed on the meaning of the Dixie flag (“Dixie flag a symbol of racism for many,” Wednesday). Allow me to present a few arguments:
1. The flag we know as the Stars and Bars, or Dixie, was not even the Confederate national flag. A blue union of 11 stars, on a white background with a red stripe was the Confederate national flag, one that the state of Georgia still uses as its state flag, with minor modifications. The Dixie flag was used only in battle, and since slave owners were rich and soldiers were poor, few of them cared about losing slaves.
2. The Ku Klux Klan is a sickening display of humanity, a group that has strayed far from its original mission. When it began, it was fighting against enterprising Northerners who were taking advantage of Southern weakness after a bloody war. After the group became violent, its first leader, Gen. N.B. Forrest, disbanded it. The current group has no ties to the original, and has no right to use the Dixie as its symbol.
3. Although I lived in the South for only a few months, I have studied the culture extensively and have found Southerners to be the most prideful, cultured people I have met anywhere. To take away the Dixie flag would be like erasing the Boston Tea Party from history books because the protestors dressed like Indians, and that could be construed as racist.
I deeply regret the cross burning in Arlington, and I wish Pastor Martin the best. But a burning cross is a racist symbol, and can only been seen that way. A Confederate battle flag is history, heritage and symbolism all rolled into one.
Lake Stevens
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