As the nation celebrates the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., there are still examples of overt racism that is allowed the legally exist in this country.
A school board in Virginia recently decided to refuse a ban on clothing showing the Confederate flag. The Franklin County School Board in Rocky Mount, Virginia, voted 7-1 against the dress code stating the Tinker vs. Des Moines case of 1969.
However, the board failed to take into consideration how the flag was used as a form of intimidation to Blacks and represented a group of people who wanted to keep Black Americans enslaved.
The racial makeup of Franklin County is 87 percent White and about 8 percent Black, according to the U.S. Census.
The chair of the Franklin County School Board, Julie Nix, believes that the ban should not take place because the board has not received reports of racism or hate.
“In Franklin County, we do not have any documented cases of a substantial disruption caused by the Confederate flag,” Nix said according to Today. “Therefore it would not be appropriate to ban the Confederate flag and violate a student’s First Amendment rights. Should it become a problem in the future, we would consider a ban.”
On the other hand, the lone Black member of the school board, Penny Blue, blasted the decision by saying, “When we see the Confederate flag, that tells us, ‘Do not enter. We are not welcome. It means the N-word, rape, lynchings, all of those things. The Confederate flag is used for white supremacy.”
