Feelings on displaying the Confederate flag on your POV or person while on a military installation?

Umm all I have to say is that I'm black and I have the Mississippi flag (which has the Confederate flag in it) tattooed on my left arm. It's just a symbol of the south. It doesnt necessarily mean hate. Now the Swastika is a whole different meaning... ban that instead of the Confederate flag.

Sir

1. My opinion regarding the Confederate flag remains the same whether a servicemember is on or off post.

2. To me, the Confederate flag symbolizes home. It's a symbol of comfort because it reminds me of the culture and traditions I share with the people from the Deep South. It also represents people who were willing to lose it all to defend their state's rights.

To others, I believe the flag can represent racism, disloyalty to the USA and/or a country torn apart from this inside. I know where I'm from, there are many who still "smell the powder burning".

3. Yes I have been in this situation before however it was with the Texas State flag. I had a little flag in my "cellar" in Afghanistan and people would pick it up and talk smack. I was extremely offended by it and I expressed my feelings in the most Christian way possible but I left it at that.
Excluding the Bible or cross, if I had a symbol that offended someone, I would take it down. It would definitely be hard to swallow my pride but for me personally, I subject myself to the Bible regulations and that means if it isn't promoting Christ then it's not a battle worth fighting. No I'm not holier than thou or anything but I do try to follow Jesus' example.

However as a leader I would not expect the same from my soldiers because they may not hold themselves accountable to the Bible. The way I would handle it would be a case-by-case basis, however I would try to ensure my decision reflected my two basic responsibilities: accomplish the mission and take care of my soldiers.

Arguing that people shouldn't judge you or assume things based on these displays is utter crap: if that's the case, why are you displaying it?

If you understand nothing else out of this entire thread, understand that people have extremely strong opinions about this issue, for and against. Every day you are judged by people before you speak based on how you look, how you are dressed, how tall you are..., etc. If you feel that you are in a position where making the best possible first impression is irrelevant for you, by all means, plaster your vehicle with your flags (confederate, rainbow, TX, Cuban, or otherwise), symbols (peace, hammer and sickle, Calvin peeing on a Chevy, whatever), and various sexual/political/hometown slogans. Wear your gang's bandanna, your football team's belt buckle, I don't care. But know that you are screaming information about yourself to everyone who sees it. Information that you may never have an opportunity to correct. You can puff yourself up and proclaim that the problem is them and not you but it will absolutely not change that first impression.

Look, I get that for you personally, it might mean something else. A great example is that someone might have an OIF veteran license plate, but that in no way means he/she supported the Iraq war on an ideological level or votes republican, but those are all things a viewer might assume. If you don't care that people will assume that, get the plate. If you do, you have to think about that fact before deciding to broadcast that information.

If you read my other posts on lots of topics, you know that I am against the idea of banning things. To ban something is to give it power. If you don't like it, ignore it. But on the other side, drop the argument that you mean something different when you fly the flag. That would be like saying I have a Miami Dolphins sticker on my car because I'm from Miami, not because I like that team. That might be 100% true, but that's not the impression my sticker gives the the majority of people viewing it. I can dislike that or disagree, but I can't try to say all of those people are wrong for making a perfectly valid assumption. Pointing out that there is different historical information doesn't take away from the umpteen interactions I have personally had with bigoted people using this exact symbol. You need to give those people your information and tell them to stop using this symbol if it means so much to you. You are arguing with the wrong individuals.

CPT Aaron Kletzing ,

I know that I may lose a significant amount of respect over my comments below . . . my sensibilities may be rather long out of date . . . but I can only tell you about my personal experiences and personal feelings arising out of my personal experiences . . .

I spent a significant amount of time in the South as a child. The Confederate flag reminds me of home, family, southern hospitality, gentility, respect, tradition, sweet tea, hominy, grits, greens, barbecue, seafood, discretion, propriety, white gloves, sun dresses, garden parties, gentlemen, heat, humidity, cotillion, and debutante balls. It also reminds me of the Dukes of Hazzard, the General Lee, Daisy Dukes, and a whole bunch of slapstick commedy.

But, truth be told, it also reminds me of a whole bunch of frightening social divisions arising often in association with the motto "the South shall rise again" . . . striking visceral deeply held fear arising out of an era in which the political establishment ran KKK meetings, burned crosses, baited, insulted, stripped naked, whipped, shot, raped, maimed, lynched, and murdered minorities and minority sympathizers, withheld social, political, educational, and economic opportunities, bathrooms were divided, participants in mixed marriage were prosecuted, jailed, disfigured, and killed . . . peaceful protests, race riots, armed police and military confrontations ensued . . . civilian intelligence exploited informants and embedded spies in domestic organizations . . . even the army was deeply divided with minority units sent out on seek and destroy missions (essentially ordered ro expose themselves to attract enemy fire), near mutiny ensued . . . and the federal government was ultimately forced to impose an exceptionally heavy hand on its own population in order to force desegregation in the educational establishment, workplace, and elsewhere. Officially, segregated transportation, restrooms, etc were outlawed but remanents remained in many places. Older neighborhoods remained segregated, insulting language persisted, and even throughout much of the 1970's exceedingly strong racial divisions persisted. Whole neighborhoods were occasionally burned by recalcitrant and/or police action.

I respect everyone's right to freedom of expression, but as recently as a couple of months ago, in a Wallmart parking lot in North Carolina, I saw a couple of good old boys (actually teen boys) driving a rusty old pickup quickly through the parking lot, with a huge Confederate flag flying well above the cab mounted on a pole in the truck bed. I'm sure these boys felt proud to be flying their flag high in the wind . . . but even they must have known it could be provovative because they never stopped to have a discussion . . . they just drove quickly through the parking lot a few times - and just as quickly fled the scene . . . no doubt knowing they would provoke a sad reaction. This was several weeks before the Ferguson shooting . . . and renewed tensions.

In the end, while I philosophically defend the right to fly the flag, wear the KKK uniform, burn crosses and perform other theatrical acts . . . I cannot in good conscience condone anyone performing these acts, speaking, or writing anything that will obviously demean, insult, terrorize, or provoke violence from anyone.

With respect to Command authority . . . maintaining good order and discipline come to mind . . . perhaps quiet counseling . . . or perhaps conservative rulemaking . . . private display in lower enlisted quarters allowed . . . but not in any place that might be taken to represent chain of command or unit endorsement. Time, manner, and place of display may be critically important . . . e.g. not flying a Crusader flag anywhere in the Mid East.

Warmest Regards, Sandy

Just as a point of clarification, the flag you have depicted in your question is NOT, nor was it ever, the Confederate States of America flag. It is the battle flag of the Army of Northern Virginia. The design was rejected as the CSA flag in 1861 and adopted (in the squared form) as the Army of Northern Virginia Battle flag.
Even though it was never a formal flag of the CSA, it has been widely adopted as a symbol of the south.
As an amateur Civil War buff, this is a common misconception that has always annoyed me.
You may now return to your regularly scheduled debate. :)

I don't know if it's because I am a historian or not, but I see the flag as being a symbol of a defeated enemy of the United States. I wouldn't wear or display it just like I wouldn't wear or display the rising sun or the swastika. I'm a southerner and I don't get the appeal from a heritage point of view. It's the flag of a defeated rebellion. Nothing more.

You can wear a Yankee's Jersey to a Red Sox game....just don't be surprised on what you have to deal with. It is absolutely your right to do so, and it's also your right to defend yourself, and you'll probably have to. But I'd probably just not wear the jersey.

If you choose to display the Confederate Flag, I'm going to assume some things about you, and one of them is that you see me as less than human because of the color of my skin. It's not up to me to change that perception, and I *will* avoid contact with you if at all possible.

I will NOT, however, attempt to restrict your right to display that flag.

The number one reason why I don't support it, is because it represents those who declared war on the nation I took an oath to serve. It's the flag of traitors.

I had a Black Soldier from SC who had a Rebel flag up in his Room. I think he also had one on his huge pickup truck as well.

I see no issue

The flag below was flown by traitors who turned against their country. This flag flew over the institution of slavery and was carried into battle by armies who would successfully preserve that institution.

I suppose when we see this flag we will all be permitted to make a snap judgement about it and those who display it.

I hope you will all zealously ensure that this flag and its derivatives are not seen on post lest someone with a degree of knowledge in history suffer an eyebrow twitch of offense. All it takes apparently is for one to proclaim offense and the symbol is defined for all.