To the Editor:

Much has been written over the years regarding this flag, what it means to those who fly it and what it means to those who are offended by it.

It’s interesting to note and there seems to be no coincidence that the flag first flew over the South Carolina state capitol in 1962 at the same time as the Civil Rights Movement was gaining traction and momentum.

The issue here is, simply put, that many are offended by this symbol, a symbol of a Confederacy that fought to preserve a way of life surrounded by and supported by a population of slave owners and rejected by the slaves.  What benefit can honoring this symbol have?  There are those who argue that the flag honors those that lost their lives in that war.   That argument fails to meet any test of logic or any test of humanity.

The lives that mattered then are the lives that matter now.  And the society that matters now is that which honors and respects all lives, and that includes black lives.

The flag should be removed.  Prejudice must be replaced with inclusion and the rule of law must be enforced.

If towns like Princeton declare their war against ignorance and prejudice one town at a time, then change can only follow.  Black lives matter.  All lives matter.

There is a movement afoot in South Carolina to encourage the leadership to remove the flag and there now appears to movement on the part of leadership to do just that.   It has been reported that due to overwhelming response to the shooting and due to the historic objection to the flag, Governor Nikki Haley has called for the flag to be moved.  By “moved” we hope, that similar to Florida, the flag be relegated to a museum in a place where it belongs as a relic of the past.

Our Princeton Human Services Commission, consistent with its mission to defend the rights and dignity of all those in need of a louder voice, implores the government of South Carolina to do the right thing and remove the flag from its current prominent position.

We hope they do.  We hope justice prevails.

Ross Wishnick

For the Princeton Human Services Commission