Is the Lone Star flag a racist symbol?
The shouting match taking place in South Carolina over the “Confederate” flag brings up some interesting issues for Texas. Texas fought a successful war for independence against Mexico, and an unsuccessful war for independence against the United States. The population of Texas contains two ethnic/racial groups that might declare the Lone Star flag to be a symbol of hatred, racism and oppression _ hispanics and blacks. The same rationale being used in South Carolina would work just as well here. It was once legal to own black slaves here just like the rest of the Confederate states. And hispanics and whites haven’t exactly written a tale of harmony across the pages of Texas history. The Lone Star flag has flown proudly over every episode. So should we haul the Lone Star flag down? On the other hand, there are a lot of people in Texas that don’t see racism and bigotry when they see the state flag flapping in the breeze. Instead, they see a symbol of independence. They see a symbol of men
