I come from a part of the country where the racial divide around the Confederate flag is nearly nonexistent because of a lack of diversity. I have been a strong supporter of the rebel flag and still am, although I did not realize the significance its presence on the state flag had before I arrived in Oxford.
As more Mississippi towns and college campuses remove the flag, the state is beginning to lose its identity. Many other Southern states have begun to distance themselves from the Confederate flag, such as Georgia and South Carolina.
The conversation about the state flag being flown on campus has been discussed, although the conversation I see as more important has not. That topic is why is the state flag not flown at a state-funded university.
The simple answer is due to the reference of the Confederate battle flag but there is more to the conversation than this. It is time for compromise. It is time for Mississippi to come together under one flag. It is time to change the Mississippi state flag.
The significance of flags has a long history in this country, from the Gadson flag of the Revolutionary war with the iconic statement “Don’t Tread on Me” to the various rebel flags of the Civil War.
Flags have brought Americans together for generations. However, we have reached a point in our country where the Confederate flag has begun to divide citizens.
Individuals should absolutely have the right to fly the Confederate flag; however, the state of Mississippi should not have the right to display a flag that subtly reminds many of a dark point in this country’s history.
Bo Verdin is a freshman criminal justice major from Cincinnati.
