The Confederate Flag Still Flies
The Use of the Stars and Bars Wednesday Continues an Abhorrent Legacy
Of all of the images to come out of the January 6th attack on the US Capitol, the one featured in this piece is the most complete. It encapsulates the moment but it also ties to history. The confederate flag is a symbol of rebellion, the symbol of a mythological past, and of white supremacy, all on full display January 6th. This picture of a white man holding the symbol of a failed rebellion in the halls of the government that defeated that rebellion is telling. While those that actually fought in the war never wanted to take over the US government, they wanted to leave it behind to form their own slavery driven nation, seeing the Stars and Bars in the capitol is the latest in a long line of events that show little has truly changed since the Civil War. White grievance has always taken precedence over other concerns and, even when violent it will be tolerated for as long as possible.
It doesn’t take much digging to find brief histories of the confederate flag, how it was never the official flag of the Confederacy, was the flag of the Army of Northern Virginia, and how it became a symbol for all of the south and of segregationists. It carries with it over 100 years of symbolism dedicated to a war to maintain white supremacy. The fact that it has endured and is still widely used proves that these ideas are far from dead. The image captures that idea. This is what that man and his fellow insurrectionists stand for, white supremacy. They, like confederates of old speak of imagined grievances, of not being listened to, of being discriminated against. Like those old confederates and white supremacists who followed and picked up that flag, this modern group talks about “a way of life.” The former group was willing to leave the nation the latter wanting to “Make America Great Again.” They see equality of other races and groups as a threat to them on a very personal level. They are willing to travel across the country to fight for that America from the past that they see as great, even if it never existed. Like the Lost Cause, it is a myth of their own making.
Another image from this insurrection that just hammers home the privilege of white protest and violence was that of the man (famously mislabeled as “Via Getty”) walking away with a congressional lectern. He was, smiling, waving for the camera because he was facing no consequences for his actions. Though not nearly as vile, it reminds me of pictures of whites attending a lynching. Smiling, celebrating, sure in that they would not face any consequences. The man carrying the flag and the other carrying the lectern are the descendants of the lynch mob.
These images from Wednesday sums up what the United States has always been, a nation that defers to white supremacy. The man with the confederate flag was standing in the middle of the nation’s capital, carrying a symbol of a failed rebellion and a symbol of white supremacy, completely unmolested. He and all that the flag represents was deemed acceptable, allowed to roam free. Lee and Longstreet might not have invaded DC, but the cause they fought for was on full display Wednesday. The Union may have won the shooting war, but the ideological battle is still going.
