They need to free Bree
Public outcry after the murder of nine Black parishioners in a Charleston, South Carolina, church by a white supremacist has drawn attention to the racism that still flourishes in U.S. society. For people around the country, the obvious question is: Why does the Confederate battle flag--a banner of racist hate--still fly on the grounds of South Carolina Capitol building? Even the state's right-wing Republican governor was forced to add her voice to the call to take down the Confederate flag. Yet the "Stars and Bars" still fly in South Carolina's capital--because by law, the flag can't be lowered without a specific act of the state legislature.
On June 27, a group of protesters decided to settle the question by taking down the flag themselves. Bree Newsome was arrested, along with one other person, after she climbed the pole and cut down the flag--she was later released on bail. Supporters are asking anyone who opposes racism to sign a ColorOfChange petition calling on state authorities to drop the charges against the anti-flag protesters.
EARLY SATURDAY morning, a multiracial group of Carolinians led by teachers and activists took down the Confederate flag from the South Carolina Capitol grounds--within an hour the state had raised the hateful banner once again, in time for an 11 a.m. white supremacist rally.
Bree Newsome, the Black woman who climbed the pole and cut down the flag, was arrested and taken into custody by Capitol police. She should be promptly released from jail, any charges should be dropped, and the legislature should immediately vote to permanently remove the flag.
According to a statement from the activists, they took down the flag because: "We could not sit by and watch the victims of the Charleston Massacre be laid to rest while the inspiration for their deaths continue to fly above their caskets."
The Confederate flag was born out of a government defending the enslavement of Black people and resurrected as an emblem for whites violently opposing racial integration. Any government that recognizes the flag is declaring that it cherishes a history of racial terror.
Taking down the flag is just one step, but a symbolically meaningful one. Make no mistake about it, however--racism isn't just a flag or words it's baked into our economy and inequities in our democracy and criminal justice system.
In Bree's own words: "It's time for a new chapter where we are sincere about dismantling white supremacy and building toward true racial justice and equality."
South Carolina officials have sided with white supremacists in choosing to restore the flag before a planned rally. The legislature must immediately vote to permanently remove the Confederate flag from the Capitol and all state buildings.
