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Look, I have the feeling we are going to have another one of these North versus South fights again on FR. Let's get back to the point.

The Confederate Battle Flag like any flag or any symbol can have many meanings. Obviously that flag has been used by racist groups in the South, esp. in the Civil Rights era.

BUT, it is not ALWAYS racist, and I'd say that the vast majority of the time it is flown it does not have racist overtones intended by the flyer.

Speaking of my native Virginia, most of the time you see the flag is at museums or by Civil War reenactors, most of whom are just history buffs. Even more often the flag is simply a way of saying I'm from the South.

I've usually seen it more as a racist intent when it is flown in Northern states such as Pennsylvania and upstate New York. I've had relatives from up there who've held such nasty opinions and I find it embarrassing and offensive as a Southerner that they would expect me to automatically agree with such beliefs.

In the South whites and blacks TODAY get along better than in other regions of the US. Obviously things were rough 40 or 50 years ago but I'm speaking of my generation.

All southern whites grow up with and among black southerners. In no other region of the US do blacks and whites share so much in common culturally from food, sport, music, and literature African and Anglo-Celtic cultures are inseparable here.

What many in the north may not have witnessed is that there is a new black southern identity going on. I'm no hip-hop fan but turn on the TV and you see southern artists rapping about grits and souped up trucks and such. That didn't happen 15 years ago.

More and more blacks are returning to live in the South because it is their cultural homeland. It's simply home.
In the past blacks were embarrassed of their southern roots as they fled to South Side Chicago or Harlem. Now they are proud to be southern.

I think these two Southern black ladies are in effect, perhaps even subconsciously stating "I'm southern, I'm a southern belle so I'm wearing a rebel bikini".

If black southerners use the Rebel emblem for themselves its a power statement. It's not ignorant, it's smart. It's saying "I'm southern too, I am a part of this region as much as anyone else".

Just like the liberal white Yankees, the liberal black NAACP Yankees just don't get it. The south is no longer poor, backward or segregated. We've had a rough past black and white, but we're here, we've always been here and now we're going to work together.

Warmest Regards,

YH

Hey don't worry; that won't happen. Before I read the whole thing (Only read the first paragraph), I'll tell you that I'm not taking any of this personally.

Having read the whole thing, I believe it to be very true. I thought I was speaking to libertarianben for a sec tho, didn't realize it was someone different. Anyway, thanks for that.