washed in madness

Facebook feeds are flooded in rebel flags unless, like me, you have been using the unfollow button to edit how much of this hate you see in your feed. I refuse to let it make me sad even when family members I love participate in the crazy.

It's hard for me to understand how after 6 more black churches have burned in the South, since talk began of taking down the flag from the capital in South Carolina, that rebel flag wavers still claim it's not about hate. If you are one of those people who think it's not about hate and you truly mean it, why wouldn't you want to distance yourself from this kind of behavior by letting off of your "it's heritage not hate" throttle just a smidge? People see you in the same light as those burning churches. There is no way to separate. Burning the church of people you don't agree with is terrorism. That's what we'd call it if our enemy did it to us. So let's call it what it is.

I know that you think that this is about your heritage but read for yourself what that heritage is. You don't have to even use the link I provided, just research for yourself. The results are over a million. Let the Confederates tell you what fighting this war meant with their words instead of what you think it was about. You weren't there, they were.

I know now you are thinking about all the things you can find all over the internet that will prove your own point because I'd do the same if the shoe was on the other foot but just think about this for a minute. You were never a slave. Your ancestors were never slaves. We don't know what this is like. We don't know what it is like coming from that background and being taught by people who were taught by people who had been owned, beaten and forced to work without a wage. To have nothing and to be nothing is a big hole to dig out of. Unless you are a very strong person mentally it could take generations to be able to hold your head up. So when people descended from slaves tell you that they'd rather not have the flag of the army that fought to keep their people enslaved waved in their face, I think we should listen up. If a person tells you that your actions feel hurtful why would you want to persist? If you were descended from slaves you probably wouldn't want a flag hanging in or over your government's buildings that represented those who fought to keep your family members enslaved, would you?

Think about what you have at stake in persisting with this war to wave your flag. What deep down are you fighting for? Is it freedom to wave around a piece of fabric? That seems like whole lot of nothing if you consider how it makes people feel that will be forever affected by it. Let's put it to the scales. Wave fabric that has no meaning unless you give it meaning/make people feel hated and unwanted. I know which side of that weighs more. I hope you do too. You cannot just say you are not a racist, anyone can do that. Your actions should show it. Treat people as your equal.

If you think this is about heritage think about what that heritage is. Not all history is worthy of braggadocio.

So now that I've said all that, I still say that I refuse to be sad. I know that the more you wave your flag and the more property you burn, then the more people will finally find a voice to rise up and say no more. That is the fire you are really fueling. Love will always conquer hate and fear and you will end up losing this war for a second time.