Meaning of the Confederate Flag

Guest: Scott Huffmon, Ph.D., Professor of Political Science, Founder and Director of the Social & Behavioral Research Laboratory at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, South Carolina  The Confederate Battle Flag is Top of Mind today. It flies on the grounds of the South Carolina State Capitol today as mourners converge to pay their respects to longtime State Senator Reverend Clementa Pinckey, who was among the nine people shot last week at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston. The murders are being investigated as hate crimes. Photos of the alleged shooter show him proudly displaying the Confederate Battle Flag. A growing chorus of voices, including the Governor of South Carolina, say it’s time for the flag to come down from its post at the state capitol; that it’s become a too-glaring symbol of racism. South Carolina lawmakers have agreed to debate the flag’s presence later this summer – they’ll need a 2/3s majority to bring it down.