Confederate Flag: Controversial Symbol of the South

Marcovitz, Hal. Confederate Flag: Controversial Symbol of the South. Part of the Patriotic Symbols of America. 2015. 48p. ISBN 978-1-4222-3121-0. Available at 929.92 on the library shelves.

The Confederate flag has been in the news recently as a symbol of racism and of oppression. Yet for many, it represents a cultural heritage for which men fought and died. When Southern States seceded from the Union following Abraham Lincoln’s election, they formed their own government and appointed a committee to create symbols for the new Confederacy. The result was the Stars and Bars, a flag similar in design and colors to that of the United States. This design proved dangerous in battle, however, as it was impossible at a distance, with dust and smoke, to determine to which side troops belonged. Both flags were red, white and blue with bars and stars!

Generals in the field designed a new battle flag that could not be mistaken for Union flags, and soon this flag was adopted and used throughout the South. It never replaced the Stars and Bars of the Confederacy, which evolved twice more over the next four years, yet it became the most recognized symbol of the South.

This book presents the history of the flag and discusses current and past controversies surrounding its use in the South. Fans of history will appreciate learning about the process of symbolism from creation to adoption to veneration, but in the end they will have to answer for themselves whether they view the Confederate flag as a tool of oppression or of freedom.