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posted by martyb on Thursday June 11 2020, @01:27PM   Printer-friendly
from the A-See-Change dept.

Many sources are reporting what we can read at ABC News,

NASCAR banned the Confederate flag from its races and properties on Wednesday, formally distancing itself from what for many is a symbol of slavery and racism that had been a familiar sight at stock car events for more than 70 years.

The move comes amid social unrest around the globe following the death in police custody of George Floyd, an unarmed black man in Minneapolis. Protests have roiled the nation for days and Confederate monuments are being taken down across the South — the tradtiional fan base for NASCAR.

[...] The issue was pushed to the fore this week as Bubba Wallace, NASCAR's lone black driver, called for the banishment of the Confederate flag and said there was "no place" for them in the sport. At long last, NASCAR obliged.

"The presence of the confederate flag at NASCAR events runs contrary to our commitment to providing a welcoming and inclusive environment for all fans, our competitors and our industry," NASCAR said. "Bringing people together around a love for racing and the community that it creates is what makes our fans and sport special. The display of the confederate flag will be prohibited from all NASCAR events and properties."

[...] The move was announced before Wednesday night's race at Martinsville Speedway where Wallace, an Alabama native, was driving a Chevrolet with a #BlackLivesMatter paint scheme. Wallace got a shoutout on Twitter from several athletes, including NBA star LeBron James, for using the paint scheme in the race.


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  • (Score: 5, Informative) by istartedi on Thursday June 11 2020, @04:18PM (2 children)

    by istartedi (123) on Thursday June 11 2020, @04:18PM (#1006372) Journal

    This. In the 1950s, states put the emblem on their flags as a measure of defiance against the Brown v. Board of Education decision. Ironically, race relations were progressing well during the era in which these flags flew. The flag never totally got away from its roots (that's not really possible), but it became somewhat de-politicized.

    The Dukes of Hazard might represent the peak of this era. The flag also came to stand for any kind of rebellion, and was thus picked up by the rock-n-roll community outside the South. Most famously, Dime Bag's Darrell's guitar had one on it. It was not standing for rebellion against Yankees, it was now rebels *without* a cause.

    It also acquired a meaning of "illegitimate authority". If a cop showed up at your door with a Confederate flag on their uniform, you knew right away they were delivering a singing telegram, or stripping or something.

    The rebel flag was the "party flag" also. You'd never dream of throwing an American flag down on the beach and lounging on it. Rebel flag? No problem.

    Alas, the flag couldn't escape its past and I'd say some time around the late 90s it became re-politicized. European hate groups who were barred from flying the nazi flag began to use it. The NAACP launched a crusade against the state flags. You got a resurgence in people using it for the "stay away from this house, n***** purpose" in states outside the South. By the time this ill fated attempt at redemption [wikipedia.org] occurred, the golden age of casual rebel flag flying was well on its way out. Just a couple years later, the church shooting in SC would put the final nail in the coffin.

    You can't be "just a Skynyrd fan" now. It's not possible. If I had one, I'd bury it in the closet somewhere, and possibly explain some day to grandkids that it wasn't always this way.

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  • (Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 11 2020, @04:54PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 11 2020, @04:54PM (#1006409)

    You can't be "just a Skynyrd fan" now. It's not possible. If I had one, I'd bury it in the closet somewhere, and possibly explain some day to grandkids that it wasn't always this way.

    Well, I saw cotton and I saw black. Tall while mansions and little shacks. Southern man, when will you pay them back? I heard screaming and bullwhips cracking. How long? How long? [youtube.com]

  • (Score: 2) by Thexalon on Thursday June 11 2020, @11:25PM

    by Thexalon (636) on Thursday June 11 2020, @11:25PM (#1006655)

    And it should be pointed out that the surviving members of Skynyrd decided a while ago to stop using the Confederate flag, precisely because of its racist connotations. And their choice to do so reportedly cost them a lot of their fan base.

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