By DAVID EPPS
Pastor

The Georgia flag flap is all but over. A majority of both the Georgia House of Representatives and the Georgia Senate voted to do away with the current Georgia state flag, which features the Georgia seal and the so-called Confederate "battle flag," and, in its place, adopt the new flag which may become known for its clutter if not for its beauty.

The governor of Georgia, Roy Barnes, laid his political career on the line, as did a majority of the mostly white Georgia legislative body, in order to retire the flag.

The measure was heavily pushed by the NAACP and just as vigorously opposed by the Sons of Confederate Veterans. Anyone who was not personally or emotionally involved could easily see why the NAACP was up in arms over this symbol of the Old South which flew over every public place and why the SCV was equally upset that a symbol revered by their ancestors was being attacked.

Just for clarification, it should be remembered that the flag just retired was instituted in 1956 by a Georgia legislature upset by federal involvement in desegregation. As a native Southerner, but not a native Georgian, it seems to me that, by placing the rebel flag on the Georgia state flag, the 1956 legislature shot a collective obscene gesture at the feds.

Good people have disagreed over the flag issue and good people will continue to disagree over the way the governor and the legislature handled this most recent event. Nevertheless, the controversy surrounding the Georgia flag is over. Good. Let's move on.

However, all of this leads me to ask two questions. The first is this: Will it now be permissible for those of Southern ancestry to display the symbols of their heritage without being targeted as bigots or racists? Can a public school student now wear a T-shirt, or baseball cap, or display a bumper sticker with the Confederate flag on it? What if the student is an honor student, a member of the basketball team, and a member of the student council, but also happens to be a member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans? Or will this student be sent home or expelled for wearing "symbols of hate" as so many have in recent years?

For the uninitiated, the Sons of Confederate Veterans is not a supremacist group, an Aryan nations organization, or a subsidiary of the Ku Klux Klan. The SCV is composed of men and women whose grandfathers, great-grandfathers, great-great-grandfathers, and other relatives were members of the military of the Confederate States of America.

The SCV upgrades Confederate cemeteries and burial sites, restores statues, works to educate people about Southern ancestry, writes articles and books on the War Between the States, participates in reenactments of long-ago battles, and expresses pride in their ancestors in a variety of ways. By and large, they are hard working and honorable people.

There are nearly 4,000 SCV members in Georgia and most are not racists or bigots. Yet, they often find themselves lumped by the media together with the KKK, the Aryan groups, and other dangerous hate organizations.

My great-great grandfather, Private Alexander Epps, who worked a small farm in "Poor Valley" in Hawkins County, Tennessee fought with the Confederates. Like some 80 percent of the Southerners of that day, he owned no slaves. In his mind, he fought against an invading army from the North that burned, pillaged, raped, and conquered.

Or are all symbols of the Old South to be eradicated from memory? Are all the streets honoring Confederate soldiers to be renamed, are their portraits and statues to be torn down, and is Stone Mountain to be sandblasted smooth? Are native Southerners to hide their heritage and are they expected to hang their heads in shame?

The second question is this: Will the black leadership now, finally, turn to issues of substance rather than symbol? Did the removal of a Confederate symbol on Georgia's flag (the removal of which I advocated, by the way), or the removal of the flag from South Carolina's capitol building, do one thing to address the question of why 25 percent of back males are in the criminal justice system?

Did the victory this week deal in any way with the fact that some 70-80 percent of black children have no father in the home? As the DeKalb Sheriff-elect Derwin Brown, an African-American, questioned so forcefully prior to his assassination, did the resolution of the flag issue deal with the alleged misdoings and corruption among so many black elected officials? Does the flag change undo the damage done in and to the black community by the revelations of the immorality of leaders such as the Rev. Jessie Jackson?

Most of the African-Americans that I know personally, have expressed similar questions in my presence. One professional person said, "I am so sick and tired of our leaders talking about things that don't matter. I don't care about the flag but I do care about the future of my children and the future of my community."

Both black and white Americans should have the liberty to feel pride in their heritage and to honor the memory of their ancestors. Both black and white Americans should work for justice, equality, and an end to bigotry. Both black and white Americans need to cut each other some slack, try to see things from the other's point of view, and treat each other with respect and dignity.

Some symbols of the Old South, like the Confederate battle flag on the Georgia flag, need to be removed. The flag is the property of all citizens, not just the majority. The SCV needs to understand that reality.

But a display of Confederate symbolism by the descendants of Southern soldiers does not mean that those same people are racists or bigots. One can be a true believer in equality and freedom, yet love the symbols of their forefathers. The NAACP needs to understand that reality.

The flag issue in Georgia is over. Let's move on.

[David Epps is rector of Christ the King Church in Peachtree City. He may be contacted at FatherDavidEpps@aol.com or at www.ChristTheKingCEC.com.]

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