A tale of two Confederate flags — and of two Carolinas

“In the hours after the massacre at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, American and South Carolina flags across that state dipped to half-staff….

“But the Confederate battle flag that sits on the grounds of the capitol in Columbia was left untouched….

“The Charleston Post and Courier explained that ‘Its status is outlined, by law, as being under the protected purview of the full S.C. Legislature, which controls if and when it comes down.’ ”

— From “Why the Confederate flag at South Carolina’s capitol didn’t dip for the Charleston dead” by Jim Galloway at ajc.com (June 18, 2015)

 

“A Confederate battle flag hung inside the old North Carolina State Capitol to mark the sesquicentennial of the Civil War is being taken down after civil rights leaders raised concerns.

“The decision was announced hours after the Associated Press published a story about the flag, which officials said was part of an historical display intended to replicate how the antebellum building appeared in 1863….”

— From “North Carolina taking down Confederate flag from old Capitol building”  by the Associated Press (March 29, 2013)

 

What a contrast! One state welds itself to official veneration of the flag, the other leaps to erase it from even historical display. 

Even so, North Carolinians who wish to share with the world their attachment to the Lost Cause do have options.

Update: That now-dead link was to an item listed on Amazon — a contemporary mashup of the North Carolina state flag and the Confederate battle flag. Like many other retailers, Amazon has now removed all Confederate merchandise.