Posted on 06/11/2020 7:01:46 AM PDT by yardboyd
NASCAR on Wednesday said it is banning the display of the Confederate flag at all events and properties of the auto racing giant.
The decision comes more than two weeks after a black man, George Floyd, died after a white Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes.
The incident ignited protests nationwide, and demands that symbols of the Confederacy be removed from public places.
Auto racing giant NASCAR said Wednesday that it is banning the display of the Confederate flag at all of its events and properties.
The announcement is sure to be controversial with a number of NASCAR fans, some of whom continue to display Confederate flags and symbols at racing events even five years after the organization asked fans not to do so.
Also Wednesday, NASCAR removed its rule mandating that racing team members stand for the national anthem.
NASCAR’s new outright ban on the Confederate flag comes more than two weeks after a black man, George Floyd, died when a white Minneapolis police officer named Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes, even after Floyd repeatedly said, “I can’t breathe.”
The incident ignited protests nationwide. It also triggered demands for the removal from public places of symbols of the Confederacy, the group of Southern states that started the Civil War in 1861 by seceding from the United States in a doomed, bloody effort to save the institution of enslaving black people.
“The presence of the confederate flag at NASCAR events runs contrary to our commitment to providing a welcoming and inclusive environment for all fans, our competitors and our industry,” NASCAR said in a prepared statement that was issued before its race Wednesday night at Martinsville Speedway in Virginia.
“Bringing people together around a love for racing and the community that it creates is what makes our fans and sport special. The display of the confederate flag will be prohibited from all NASCAR events and properties.”
It is not clear how NASCAR plans to enforce the ban.
On Sunday, Bubba Wallace, the only black full-time driver on the NASCAR circuit, wore a shirt bearing the words “I Can’t Breathe/Black Lives Matter” before a race in Atlanta.
“My next step would be to get rid of all Confederate flags,” Wallace said in a CNN interview the following day.
“No one should feel uncomfortable when they come to a NASCAR race. So it starts with Confederate flags. Get them out of here. They have no place for them.”
Wallace also said, “There’s going to be a lot of angry people that carry those flags proudly but it’s time for change.”
“We have to change that, and I encourage NASCAR to have those conversations to remove those flags.”
Before Sunday’s race in Atlanta, the 40 cars on the track stopped in front of grandstands and shut off their engines.
NASCAR President Steve Phelps delivered a message over driver’s radio sets.
“Our country is in pain and people are justifiably angry, demanding to be heard,” Phelps said. “The black community and all people of color have suffered in our country, and it has taken far too long for us to hear their demands for change. Our sport must do better. Our country must do better.”
“The time is now to listen, to understand and to stand against racism and racial injustice,” Phelps said. “We ask our drivers, our competitors and all our fans to join us in this mission, to take a moment of reflection, to acknowledge that we must do better as a sport, and join us as we now pause and take a moment to listen.”
It had been common for decades at NASCAR events, particularly in the South, for Confederate flags to be displayed by fans. But in 2015, on the heels of the slaughter in Charleston, South Carolina, of nine black churchgoers by a racist named Dylan Roof, NASCAR asked that fans not display the Confederate flag at races.
Many fans have ignored that request.
NASCAR on Wednesday said it is banning the display of the Confederate flag at all events and properties of the auto racing giant. The decision comes more than two weeks after a black man, George Floyd, died after a white Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes. The incident ignited protests nationwide, and demands that symbols of the Confederacy be removed from public places.
Confederate flags are seen flying over the infield campground prior to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Bojangles' Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway on September 6, 2015 in Darlington, South Carolina. Confederate flags are seen flying over the infield campground prior to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway on September 6, 2015 in Darlington, South Carolina. Jerry Markland | Getty Images
Auto racing giant NASCAR said Wednesday that it is banning the display of the Confederate flag at all of its events and properties.
The announcement is sure to be controversial with a number of NASCAR fans, some of whom continue to display Confederate flags and symbols at racing events even five years after the organization asked fans not to do so.
Also Wednesday, NASCAR removed its rule mandating that racing team members stand for the national anthem.
NASCAR’s new outright ban on the Confederate flag comes more than two weeks after a black man, George Floyd, died when a white Minneapolis police officer named Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes, even after Floyd repeatedly said, “I can’t breathe.”
The incident ignited protests nationwide. It also triggered demands for the removal from public places of symbols of the Confederacy, the group of Southern states that started the Civil War in 1861 by seceding from the United States in a doomed, bloody effort to save the institution of enslaving black people.
Why NASCAR has a great opportunity to attract a new audience by being one of the first U.S. sports to resume live events
“The presence of the confederate flag at NASCAR events runs contrary to our commitment to providing a welcoming and inclusive environment for all fans, our competitors and our industry,” NASCAR said in a prepared statement that was issued before its race Wednesday night at Martinsville Speedway in Virginia.
“Bringing people together around a love for racing and the community that it creates is what makes our fans and sport special. The display of the confederate flag will be prohibited from all NASCAR events and properties.”
It is not clear how NASCAR plans to enforce the ban.
On Sunday, Bubba Wallace, the only black full-time driver on the NASCAR circuit, wore a shirt bearing the words “I Can’t Breathe/Black Lives Matter” before a race in Atlanta.
“My next step would be to get rid of all Confederate flags,” Wallace said in a CNN interview the following day.
“No one should feel uncomfortable when they come to a NASCAR race. So it starts with Confederate flags. Get them out of here. They have no place for them.”
Wallace also said, “There’s going to be a lot of angry people that carry those flags proudly but it’s time for change.”
Before Sunday’s race in Atlanta, the 40 cars on the track stopped in front of grandstands and shut off their engines.
NASCAR President Steve Phelps delivered a message over driver’s radio sets.
“Our country is in pain and people are justifiably angry, demanding to be heard,” Phelps said. “The black community and all people of color have suffered in our country, and it has taken far too long for us to hear their demands for change. Our sport must do better. Our country must do better.”
“The time is now to listen, to understand and to stand against racism and racial injustice,” Phelps said. “We ask our drivers, our competitors and all our fans to join us in this mission, to take a moment of reflection, to acknowledge that we must do better as a sport, and join us as we now pause and take a moment to listen.”
It had been common for decades at NASCAR events, particularly in the South, for Confederate flags to be displayed by fans. But in 2015, on the heels of the slaughter in Charleston, South Carolina, of nine black churchgoers by a racist named Dylan Roof, NASCAR asked that fans not display the Confederate flag at races.
Many fans have ignored that request.
Earlier Wednesday, President Donald Trump said that he will not allow the names of U.S. Army bases that are named after generals who fought for slave-holding states of the Confederacy in the Civil War to be changed.
On the same day, Trump’s top economic advisor Larry Kudlow said he does not believe that systemic racism exists in the United States.
NBC News reported Wednesday that Democrats in the House and Senate plan to reintroduce in both of those chambers of Congress a bill that would remove from the U.S. Capitol the statues of those who voluntarily served in the Confederacy.
NASCAR just happens to be the most venal and mercenary of the motorsport sanctioning bodies.
But they will be handing out knee pads and white flags to all going to their events.
Looks like I picked the wrong day to abstain from walloping the clown
LOL
No more NASCAR saying your against 2A and now the CSA flag they are toast.
Idiot....
Why didn’t all demonstrators go to Minneapolis? Was the cost too steep for even soreass?
This is wrong! Liberals want to do away with history so they can manipulate people.
That definitely qualifies as an exception. However, some quality control needs to be enforced. I’ve some cases at NASCAR races where there wouldn’t be enough eye bleach if some women wore those.
Does NASCAR own the tracks?
The tracks are owned by another entity. Actually many entities depending on the location. Nascar leases the tracks.
I had previously quit NFL and NASCAR, but if I hadn’t already, I would NOW!
Who NEEDS either one?
Read a book, take a walk/hike, kiss your wife (IF she is a biological female), watch COPS on TV ...wait...
Good lord who removed that woman
American Flag Ban next.
That has always been the goal......First, they came for the Confederate Flag....
A jealous female, or an incel.
I just wish Chevy guys actually drove Chevys, etc.
So it is up to the track to make the rules on flags, not NASCAR, they are a “customer” not an owner.
“Principle” is one thing that is in short supply in America today.
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