My thoughts on the 1956 Georgia State Flag.

This flag, for those of you unfamiliar with Georgia history, was Georgia's state flag from 1956-2001. It was chosen during a time of social upheaval, and may have been chosen to protest desegregation. The contentious part of course is the red field containing a blue St. Andrew's Cross, inlaid with 13 stars. The stars represent the 11 Confederate states that seceded from the Union, with two more stars for Kentucky and Missouri (which did not secede). The configuration is known as specifically as the Confederate Battle Flag, and though it is but one of many flags used during the Civil War, eventually became the most recognizable symbol of the rebellion.
       Rebellion. That is what I always associated most with the Battle Flag. To wear it, to own it, to showcase it was a sign that you were not part of the mainstream. If you wore the flag, good church folk would not try to show you to the Lord, because you were probably listening to Satanic rock music and rode motorcycles and drank 100 proof liquor and therefore beyond human efforts to reach you, beyond everything but prayer. Despite the strong association of the flag with the South and all the Old South stood for, the flag's meaning had changed to be associated mainly with ruffians and non-conformists. In the 90s, Georgia was becoming known as a cosmopolitan center, its capital the economic engine of the South. Georgia wanted (and still does) to keep Southern hospitality and charm, while ignoring the racism and aristocratic attitudes that had created that gentility. Georgian businessmen might still enjoy sweet tea and cornbread for supper, but they wanted to do business with the world. In 1999, they began the real demand for changing the state flag, after the NAACP organized well-publicized boycotts of several states that also had the Battle Flag as part of their state flags.

  Had the NAACP not been pressuring states to change the emblem, Georgia might have been able to change the flag with a simple contest or referendum. The publicity led many who were already antagonistic toward the overall changes of the 90s to see the 1956 state flag as a symbol of a South that was slipping away - the South of small town squares, county fairs, binding handshakes, and furious resistance to Communism. These felt they were being sold out by their Atlanta brethren. They didn't understand the new technology that made Atlanta a leader on the world stage, they didn't trust Atlanta doing business with foreign countries, and they just wished everyone would leave them alone. Thus they began a fight for the old state flag, and cost a governor his job.

    In 1999 I was 13 years old, and I became increasing swept up in politics. I wanted Mr Bush for president, because I felt he had better morals than Mr Clinton, and I was positive if we had a Republican governor we could have real change in the state of Georgia. When Barnes unceremoniously changed the flag, I was incensed along with most people I knew. We rallied for Perdue because he promised a referendum on the flag issue, and we refused to see any other issues. Perdue won in a landslide, becoming the first Republican governor of Georgia since Reconstruction, and he did it on a single issue: changing the flag back. However, in my naivete, I thought we would still have a mixed legislature. I was proven wrong by later events and the 2004 election.

   Perdue is a pragmatic man. He knew he could win the election based on the flag issue, but as a Georgia businessman he had no intention of changing the flag back. He had no intention of hurting business interests by provoking a boycott. He allowed a referendum, but one that did not include the 1956 flag as an option. In 2003 the current flag was chosen (which interestingly includes elements of the Stars and Bars which was the National flag of the Confederacy).

  At the current time, I'm no longer interested in revisiting the flag battle. I like our current state flag, and the Battle Flag still has a special place in my heart. But I'll never allow a single issue to dominate my vote so much ever again. Perdue disappointed me on that occasion, and I began to realize the Republican party is not where my politics lie. I wanted someone who would overturn the good ol' boy system; I got a guy who is a paragon of it. Symbolic as it of many things, the state flag is nowhere near as important as learning what a candidate intends to do to insure prosperity, improve education, and resolve Atlanta's water crisis. The lesson learned? Substance over symbolism. Give me a candidate who is serious about putting people back to work, and I might not even care if he's a Yankee.