Lakeside bans Confederate flag

Augusta Chronicle ^ | 11/10/01 | Melissa Hall

[shuckmaster]

Lakeside High School officials are asking students not to wear clothing bearing the Confederate flag, at least for now.

While the Columbia County school system does not prohibit students from wearing the Confederate standard, recent racial tensions at Lakeside have prompted school officials to temporarily ban it on campus.

"On Tuesday we had five students involved in what we call actions preceding a fight; they were yelling at each other and squaring off," Lakeside Principal Victor Lee said. "Three of them were black, and two were white. The black kids came out with the fact that they felt like we were a racist school, with the kids wearing the Confederate flag, and they made an issue out of it."

The five students were suspended, Mr. Lee said. Nine other white students were identified throughout the day trying to promote the fight off-campus.

"As we got involved with those nine, I noticed that some of them were wearing the Confederate flag, and I asked them to work with me as we got through this issue and not wear the Confederate flag for a while," he said.

The students who were wearing the Confederate flag were asked to change their attire, said schools Superintendent Tommy Price.

"It is my understanding that they had other T-shirts to take their place and that they didn't have a problem with it," he said.

Students are generally not prohibited from wearing the flag at school.

"As long as there's no real problem caused by it, we don't have a problem with students wearing the Confederate emblem," Mr. Price said. "But given the disruption it's causing in the school, we felt like we needed to take this stance at this time."

[Protect the Bill of Rights]

I have never been ashamed to admit I had ancestors who owned slaves, as well as ancestors who were considered white trash. I am an extension of them. I am the sum total of all who have come before me. If I have learned from the mistakes of my ancestors, I have nothing to be ashamed of.

It doesn't matter what they did. What matters is what I give to my children to pass on to their children.

[Illbay]

You strike me as having a personal problem with Southern heritage.

Are you able to distinguish between culture and politics?

[Lancey Howard]

I find the pagan 'sun god' to be offensive

I like that one - - I think it's hilarious, if you are referring to the cartoon sun with the smiling face and the sunglasses.

[gizman]

From someone is is a YANKEE, in the NE sense, this really makes me mad. The Stars and Bars are a part of OUR history. This flag does NOT represent hate, nor slavery. It represents Americans who took it upon themselve to separate from the North. This was a sad time in our history, many good people on BOTH sides died. So I say DAMN the ACLU and the liberal left winged commies, FLY this FLAG. IT IS OUR HISTORY.... Oh, by the way, my Great Great Grandfather was a Union solder, and was wounded in the Battle of Gettysburg. SO THERE, you left winged commie lovers.

[Lancey Howard]

Do you know what the population of the Confederacy was circa 1850?
Do you know how many families were wealthy enough to own slaves?
Of those families, do you know how many had a need for slaves?
And of those families, do you know how many actually owned slaves?
And of those families that owned slaves, do you know how many of them mistreated their slaves?

The answer is...... 19.

[shuckmaster]

Hey Illone, you left out a few...

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NAACP continues boycott against SC tourism
Where was patriotism when we needed it?
Confederate flag battle still in court
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After attacks, many Southerners fly different flag
Four more students suspended for wearing Confederate flags
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Driving Dixie Down
15 students suspended over Confederate flag T-shirts
What would Abraham Lincoln do?
Confederate Decline
Bessinger Vows New Fight For Confederate Flag
County changes flags to show unity
Confederate flag, teacher absent from open house
Some Southern Charm Is Wearing Off: It's the Unique Way It Sounds
The Confederate Solution to World Terrorism:
Confederate Flag Raises Flap in School
Flag Banned In Cleveland School
Old Glory flies again at Piggy Park restaurants
Bridge controversy resurfaces NAACP to file complaint for 'Confederate' name change
Stanly to close offices for Confederate Memorial Day
new Hunley article
Black Mayoral Candidate Embraces Confederate Flag

[stainlessbanner]

Bump for Gizman. Thanks for your support.

[4CJ]

Heck, I never said they didn't, what I said was at the time of the CW they didn't. But it was also legal under the US Constitution. And yes, I can find ancestors that had slaves, but the few I can find were circa 1760 - 1820. The vast majority were farmers that employed their families or a hired hand. Slaves were way too expensive.

Most Northerners believe that all slaves were mistreated in the South. Propoganda & revisionist history. Why would the ex-slaves refuse to flee up north, and serve instead with their former owners? Why, when given the choice to leave, would the majority choose to sharecrop beside their former owner?

[billbears]

one of you southerners who will finally admit that they had a relative who actually owned a slave.

I'll admit it. I have ancestors that owned slaves. BTW, also know of more than a few blacks that owned slaves as well, especially in Charleston circa 1860, but that's neither here nor there.

Tell me, how many free blacks lived say in Illinois around that same time? or maybe Oregon?

Oh, that's right. Free blacks weren't even ALLOWED in those states. Have you found anything yet before late 1862(and I use that date because by then he had lost most support from northern voters and HAD to ask for abolitionist help) stating lincoln's total disgust with his home state's law instituted in 1853? Or Oregon's state constitution in 1859? Or the Connecticut laws? And you wonder why blacks, free or slave, were prevalent in the South? By many NORTHERN state laws, they weren't even allowed to live in the north!!

[sweetliberty]

The whole point is that a very, very small percentage of southerners EVER owned slaves. They were a luxury of the very wealthy, so it is very likely that none of the ancestors of those of us on this board owned slaves. I have researched my family history, and while I have found relatives from Kentucky who fought on both sides in the war, I have yet to find a single slave owner. If I did, I would not deny it. Our history, be it glorious or shameful, is part of who we are, and not liking it doesn't change it.

[sweetliberty]

"Hey Illone, you left out a few..."

Right On!! You reckon Illway will read them?

[sweetliberty]

Bump for my favorite yankee!

[FReethesheeples]

My draft letter to Trinity Marine, which should be sent to Lakeside with appropriate changes:

How DARE Trinity Marine Lakeside) be so "politically correct" and high handed and cowardly as to ban (hard-hats from wearing) the American Flag at ANY time, particularly at time of WAR!

This is DISGUSTING and almost treasonous!

SHAME on Trinity Marine (Lakeside)!

P.S. Mao Tse Tung coined the term "political correctness" which is a chillingly UN-American concept, which tramples on the Constitution and the First Amendment!

Ergo, you are Maoists, NOT Americans!

[Non-Sequitur]

The statistics I've seen from the census of 1860 and before indicate that you are wrong. Slave ownership was very much a middle class institution. Stonewall Jackson, for example, on a teachers salary at VMI owned slaves for much of his adult life. The average slave owner owned less than 5. If you look at the census figures the number of southerners who grew up in slave-owned families approached 50% in some states like Mississippi and were well over 40% in states like South Carolina and Georgia. Over all almost 30% of all southerners grew up in slave-owning families. It was far more common than you seem prepared to admit.

[Non-Sequitur]

You are the first to admit it and I congratulate you. Considering that it was a perfectly leagal practice and accepted by the majority of Americans at the time I see nothing to be embarassed by it. It was legal when they owned slaves and the stopped owning them when it became illegal. Case closed.

[Non-Sequitur]

And your source for this information is?

[Non-Sequitur]

I have no doubt that the overwhelming majority of slave owners did not physically mistreak their slaves. The slaves were a valuable asset and formed a large part of the owners net worth. One would not intentionally harm something of that value. On the other hand, I wouldn't want that kind of life for myself and I doubt that anyone else would, either.

[Non-Sequitur]

Tell me, how many free blacks lived say in Illinois around that same time? or maybe Oregon?

In Illinois there were 7628 free Blacks of all ages in 1860. In Oregon there were 128. By comparison there were 144 free Blacks living in Arkansas, a state with about 6 times as many people as Oregon. There were 8627 free Blacks in Connecticut. In Texas, which had about the the same population as Connecticut, there were 355. Looking at it another way, 99.88% of all Blacks in Arkansas and 99.81% of all Blacks in Texas were slaves while 100.00% of the free Blacks in Oregon and Illinois were not. Statistics are SO much fun. Any other questions?

[Non-Sequitur]

The whole point is that a very, very small percentage of southerners EVER owned slaves.

I grew up in a large family, 8 kids. My dad worked and my mom didn't drive so while we had a car, it was registered and licensed in my father's name and he was the sole driver. So one way of looking at it is that only 10% of the people in my family owned a car. But we all reaped the benefits of car ownership. Likewise with slavery. The total number of slave owners may have been around 6 or 7 percent, depending on the state, but undoubtably almost all of those slave-owners had wives and children. Looking at it that way, almost 50% of the families in Mississippi owned slaves. Over 40% of the families in South Carolina and Georgia. Over all, almost 30% of the families in the south owned slaves. So that is why it was so important to them. They weren't fighting to defend the rights of 6% of the population, they were fighting to defend an institution that almost a third of them had directly benefited from.