Well, they got what they asked for and now they are upset with the outcome. Neo-Confederates wanted a vote on what flag should represent Georgia. They have been bemoaning the replacement of a flag adopted during the South's Massive Resistance campaign against desegration by a less offensive one in 2001. After ejecting Democratic Gov. Roy Barnes from office, they demanded that a referendum be held on what emblem would fly over the state. Voters decided Wednesday. ATLANTA (AP)--Southern heritage groups called for an economic boycott of Atlanta on Wednesday, a day after Georgia voters overwhelmingly approved a state flag without the divisive Confederate rebel ``X.''
About 50 people rallied outside the Capitol, saying tepid turnout for the flag referendum meant people thought it was phony. The ballot didn't allow voters to choose the 1956 version dominated by the Confederate cross of stars. ``The rigged referendum yesterday was an insult to the good dignity of every Georgian,'' said Steve Harris, vice chairman of the Southern Party of Georgia. ``Large segments of the Georgia General Assembly have more regard for the Yankee dollars. . .than they do for the wishes of their constituents,'' said Ray McBerry of the Georgia League of the South. ``We encourage Southerners to cease doing business within the city-state of Atlanta.'' Voters overwhelmingly chose to keep the red, white and blue banner adopted last year by the Legislature. About three of every four voters chose that flag over a blue flag selected in 2001 to replace the 1956 banner that was dominated by the Confederate battle emblem. Only about one in five registered voters participated in Tuesday's nonbinding referendum. But political leaders of both parties expressed confidence that the referendum will end the flag flap. Many particpants in neo-Confederate groups are unmoved by the referendum. Remarks from an online forum are typical. From: rebeldog
Sent: 3/6/2004 9:27 PM
"A sinister cabal of superior writers."
Article comments
1 - Shark
IT'S FREE!
Take Shark's Confederate Flag Test!
Find out if you're a racist white person,
an overly sensitive black person,
or just a Civil War fanatic who needs to get a life.
Guaranteed or your money back!
2 - RJ Elliott
Another post, another attack on supposed "racists."
You're a one-trick pony, MD. Why don't you break a leg and get turned into glue like the rest of your lot?
3 - Doc
The "Stars and Bars" is no different from the Swastika. It's not about "Heritage" at all. Those Johnny Reb's LOST the war and with it, the Confereracy deserves to be buried.
But southern yahoo's are all up in a panty twist.
Face it, the GOP in Atlanta lied their way in to kicking out the Dem's to get their hateful slavery symbol back and now the GOP, once in office, screwed you. Too bad GOP voters never, ever learn.
4 - Eric Olsen
I would call the Confederate flag, or any recognizable derivation thereof, an unambiguously racist symbol - how could it not be, it represents slavery? This is not a matter of oversensitivity: this is a matter of one group of people positively reveling in the horrific sins of the past.
5 - Shark
Just for the record:
I would call the Confederate flag a piece of cloth.
6 - ClubhouseCancer
Heritage. States rights. Southern pride. Southern independence. Battle flag. Confederates. Rebels. The CSA.
Anyone else think these racist types are like the apocryphal Eskimos with their 37 different words for snow?
7 - sheri
*feeling as if she has been baited, Sheri, a native Georgia girl decides to comment with much caution and trepidation*
I probably speak for the majority of southern whites here...and my feeling about all of it is ..welll, frankly my dear, I dont give a damn. No, the emblem should not be on the flag.This is a dead horse issue,the emblem is no longer there, the votes are in, lets move on. The state of Georgia has much more pressing issues to deal with...and much to the apparent chagrin of others elsewhere...and to the fanatic die hards... who wish to use our horrific and bloody past as a platform...whites and african americans work side by side to deal with those issues.It's a beautiful day here in Georgia :0)
8 - Shark
Sheri, thanks. Nothing like a little rational perspective from someone who actually 'has a life'.
Now go fill the birdfeeder, listen to the music, and enjoy the day!
xxoo
Shark (headin' out into 75 degree Tx sunshine to do the same)
9 - sheri
yw Shark ;0)
10 - Gerald Ball
I still say that there is racism and there is racism. Was the Confederate flag offensive? Yes, but there are things that are as offensive or more that people still fly or have on their T shirts and bumper stickers. But was it racist?
I say racism means causing physical or significant emotional injury to someone or denying them opportunity. Our civil rights leaders have been very effective of late in fighting things that are merely offensive and horrible at addressing actual racism. I still ask my black Georgia Democratic brethren if the flag was worth losing a very good (if weak on civil rights) governor in Georgia AND in Mississippi. And why black leaders didn't support the Republican governor of South Carolina when he tried to remove the Confederate flag and instead endorsed and gave 98% of the vote to his pro - flag Democratic opponent who also spoke at Bob Jones University. As a matter of fact, black leaders in Georgia delayed for an extremely long time doing anything about the flag because they didn't want it to harm the prospects of Bill Clinton, Zell Miller, and Roy Barnes in the state.
The SOCV say that it has nothing to do with racism and everything to do with politics. The NAACP needed an easy victory to get the contributions coming in and recruit members and media attention, and also a nice little wedge issue. It is ideal to attract the attention of the media and other liberals who can scapegoat rural and poorly educated southern whites who have no political, social, and economic power outside of their small towns and ignore the real racism that goes on in Washington D.C., Wall Street, in our major universities, public school systems, and oh yes in the little gated subdivisions of the sort that Hillary Clinton and Katie Couric live in. And that is just racism and not failed social and economic and political policies that disproportionately harm blacks. Instead of talking about how many blacks were harmed by social promotion and how many black farmers were run out of business by the Department of Agriculture and how welfare rules preventing blacks who receive benefits and housing from being married, we show hard working church going low income whites who (as Howard Dean said) out to be supporting the Democratic, liberal, socialist, and progressive movements right along with blacks in the same boat waving their flags and pretending that THEY are the ones keeping black folks down. Well, I can tell you ... I have been around whites who proudly displayed the Confederate flag all my life, and it isn't those whites that can do me the least bit of harm outside of the extremely remote threat of violence (domestic violence and black on black crime are much bigger issues in our community). Now, I am not going to pull a Tom Sowell or Jesse Helms and claim that liberal whites the real racists and that sort or pointing the finger at black folks ... comments like that are not helpful in this context ... instead I am going to say that if displaying the Confederate flag is racist, it is the least sort we should worry about.
11 - Dizzy
The Confederate flag is a symbol, and like any symbol, it can envoke varying emotions dependin g upon the opinions of the beholder of said symbol.
The Civil War (if there can be a "civil" war) was about the rights of States to legislate their own laws. The States lost. Now, I am of the opinion that no human being should ever be enslaved against their will, but nonetheless, the matter of the afformentioned war settled not only the rights of individuals to be free, which is positive, but also set a very negative precedent toward Federal interruption of State legislature. (Drug laws, anyone?)
A flag is a scrap of cloth. The meaning that is affixed to it is what matters. Obviously, the issue of the flag, the war, and the inherent bigotry in most of the government on any level runs much deeper than that mere scrap of cloth.
12 - me
hi how are you doing
13 - Richard Brodie
Sheri from Geogia laments our horrific and bloody past
Lynchings of blacks were indeed criminal bloody acts (is there any tally of just how many, or few, such incidents there were?) But the real "bloody past" was Sherman's march to the sea, and practically a whole generation of young southern men slaughtered. And the bloody banner THAT genocide took place under was the stars and stripes.
The memory of those hundreds of thousands of brave soldiers deserves to be honored by having the rebel flag they fought and died under, flying proudly over the land they gave their lives for.
14 - Clint From Georgia
Perhaps if we crossed the African flag with the Confederate flag, everyone would be happy then, huh?
15 - Terry Noble
I have read all the post here and there are many who have good points...I do not agree with them all but all are entitled to their opinion. Having said that, MY opinion is: "It really does not matter about the configuration of the Georgia state flag one way or the other...your never going to make everyone happy anyway, BUT the WAY it was FORCED on the many people of the state by a FEW who enjoy power provided by the people is the root problem"
The "vote" that was allowed to the people of Georgia was and STILL is a SHAM, hence the minimal turnout....it is NOT ROCKET science to figure that out!
Besides, who ASKED them to start spending OUR TAX money to change the flag in the first place...well, who would best benefit from the change?? Figure that out and you have the answer, it's pretty simple. Of course the media folks in Atlanta are always ready to jump on the bandwagon on anything that might sell papers does not matter is it is the right thing to do or not...just sell papers and scream keywords of an issue to create turmoil...ahhh, what a country we live in...:)
Many folks that have posted here and that I have spoken with about this subject pretty much agree...it was not the changing of the flag that is the issue...it is how it was FORCED on the MANY by the FEW without any addressing of the 1956 flag on the voting ballot....POLITICS really suck....the only thing worse then divorce lawyers and common criminals are politicians,they are all "legal criminals, thieves, lying self endulging pukes that use US the people to steal and line their own pockets....yeah, I REALLY do have a problem with them all! Including our current lying govenor, I will be voting him out this fall for sure!!
LET US TAKE A "TRUE" VOTE ON KEEPING THE CURRENT FLAG OR THE 1956 FLAG.
Yeah, I know...nobody is listening and could careless, but it makes me FEEL better!
Have a great day...:)