The recent shooting at a historic black church in Charleston, South Carolina has brought renewed attention on the Confederate flag, which still flies on the grounds of the state Capitol. The alleged killer, Dylann Storm Roof, was a white supremacist who “had that kind of Southern pride,” as a friend put it, and all indications suggest that racism motivated the massacre of the nine black church members who were attending a prayer meeting (even if some Republican politicians and conservative pundits are oddly reluctant to admit as much).  

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Under the circumstances, it is particularly ugly that the Confederate flag flies at the state Capitol in Columbia. The flag in question was one of the battle flags used by a treasonous army which waged war against the United States of America in order to preserve the slavery of black people. In the words of  Alexander H. Stephens, the vice-president of the Confederate States of America, here’s what that war was all about:

Our new government is founded upon exactly the opposite idea; its foundations are laid, its corner- stone rests, upon the great truth that the negro is not equal to the white man; that slavery subordination to the superior race is his natural and normal condition. This, our new government, is the first, in the history of the world, based upon this great physical, philosophical, and moral truth. 

This same flag became the symbol in the twentieth century of neo-Confederate, white supremacist terrorists. Men like, it is alleged, Roof.

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State Rep. Norman “Doug” Brannon, a Republican, told Chris Hayes of MSNBC yesterday that he plans to file a bill to end the practice of flying the flag of white supremacy. “I had a friend die Wednesday night for no reason other than he was a black man,” Brannon told Hayes. “Sen. Pinckney was an incredible human being. I don’t want to talk politics but I’m going to introduce the bill for that reason. I will pre-file that bill in December before we go back into session.”

Mitt Romney, the GOP nominee for president in 2012, has also called for taking down the flag. He tweeted: “Take down the #ConfederateFlag at the SC Capitol. To many, it is a symbol of racial hatred. Remove it now to honor #Charleston victims.” (The New York Times notes that way back in 2008, Romney took a similar position, stating: “That flag shouldn’t be flown. That’s not a flag I recognize.”)

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2016 frontrunner Jeb Bush followed suit, taking to social media to make this statement: 

My position on how to address the Confederate flag is clear. In Florida, we acted, moving the flag from the state grounds to a museum where it belonged. This is obviously a very sensitive time in South Carolina and our prayers are with the families, the AME church community and the entire state. Following a period of mourning, there will rightly be a discussion among leaders in the state about how South Carolina should move forward and I’m confident they will do the right thing.

Other prominent Republicans, however, have been reluctant to challenge the neo-Confederates. South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, a candidate for president, initially said yesterday that “this is part of who we are” and that the current compromise in place — the flag flies on the Capitol grounds rather than over the Capitol building — “works here.” (While the U.S. and state flags flew at half mast in the wake of the tragedy, the Confederate flag has continued to fly at full mast.) Later in the day Friday, he changed course a bit, saying it was a debate that “needs to happen” — though there is still no indication he would support removing the flag. 

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South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has said that CEOs visiting the state haven’t complained to her, so really, what’s the big deal. As for the symbol of racism, “we really kind of fixed all that” because…she was elected governor (she is Indian American).” After the tragedy in Charleston, Haley said, “I think the state will start talking about that again, and we’ll see where it goes.”

Worth remembering that neo-Confederates can still intimidate some Southern legislators — look no further than Arkansas, where efforts to remove Robert E. Lee from the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday during the last legislative session went down in a haze of hateful heritage. I can only imagine that if the Confederate flag flew above the Arkansas Capitol, folks like Rep. Josh Miller would think it was “neat.” 

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Rep. Nate Bell, a former Republican and now idiosyncratic independent, was one of the backers of the bill to remove Lee from the state holiday honoring the civil rights hero. Bell has been vocal on social media today about taking down the flag in South Carolina and the toxic influence of white supremacist nostalgia on Arkansas politics:

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