ôTo strike freedom of the mind with the fist of patriotism is an old and ugly subtlety,ö wrote Adlai Stevenson in a 1952 speech, and his words could well apply to the debate that has gone on for generations in the state of Georgia over the flying of the stateÆs flag, which since 1956 has had the Confederate emblem incorporated into it. Although recent protests over the Georgia flag have not been as those in South Carolina over the Confederate Battle FlagÆs flying over the statehouse in Columbia û a somewhat more egregious action û it remains a contentious issue in the state that is considers itself both to be the heart of Dixie and also the heart of the new, enlightened, progressive South (Harrison A1).
Protests over the stateÆs flag, which is seen by some as a reminder of the stateÆs history of independence and by others as a continuing celebration of the racism of the South, has become increasingly heated over the past several decades. But the issue of how to handle the Confederate emblem on the state flag and how to address the issue in general of the Confederate battle flag û which looks so simple to advocates on both sides of the protest û is much more complex than recent political debates would indicate. Both sides do indeed seem interested in striking at freedom of the mind with their own form of loudly proclaimed patriotism, and if many Georgians have been far too insensitive to the continuing legacy of slavery and the awful weight of racism, then others have not remembered the terrible colonialism of Reconstruction and the loss forever of a way of life that was bound and yet also separate from slavery.
This paper examines the history leading up to the current protests over the state flag and the particular tenure of the most recent debates, ending with arguments over why the flag should remain.
While protests have been raised over the Georgia state flag for a number of years, the controversy over the flag...