The Confederate flag “represents the lie” at the core of American history
Namely, that "half this country thought it was a good idea to raise an empire rooted in slavery"
SCOTT ERIC KAUFMAN
... Coates continued in this vein, noting that Dylann Roof isn’t the only one culpable for his killing spree. “The Confederate flag represents an attempt to perpetrate a lie about American history, to bury the fact that half this country thought it was a good idea to raise an empire rooted in slavery,” he said.
“That is a part of our history. When you bury that history other people take control of it and use the flag for their purposes, and to ennoble their own hatred. Putting off the discussion allows the narrative of white supremacy. We really empowered that dude.”
As to the way many white Southerners are taught about race relations, Coates said that “first, you’re told that it happened a long time ago, and second, that it has no impact on what it does right now.”
“That’s a lie,” he added. “That’s poisonous. That myth about black people is deeply tied into the Lost Cause. Nikki Haley says Roof perverted the flag. No, he correctly understood what it stood for. It stood for the right to take people’s bodies. We have a responsibility for the perpetration of that lie.”
http://www.salon.com/2015/07/14/ta_nehisi_coates_the_confederate_flag_represents_the_lie_at_the_core_of_american_history/
