June 20, 2020
False flag. A flag flown to disguise true identity.
Heritage. It’s a word I use a lot. In writing and pilgrimages and gatherings and the titles of my books. As they would say in Ireland, I do rather bang on about it. And I don’t see that changing. But let me be clear. When I speak and write about heritage, I am focused on a heritage of being in right relationship with the Earth, the sacred, and in community. A heritage that is shared in so many cultures around the world, especially those cultures that are still woven with their indigenous roots.
These are heritages to honor and celebrate. There are those that do not deserve to be honored or celebrated. These are the heritages of exploitation and greed and subjugation which are also present in world cultures. Including ours. Although people tend to wave the concepts of heritage and history as some kind of sacred banner, these are false flags that disguise the truth.
Currently many in our nation are embracing the confederate flag as a symbol of our history and heritage. But let’s be clear. This is not about some lofty ideal of heritage. It’s about racism. And while the history of the confederacy that birthed the flag only lasted five years, the heritage of racism embedded in that flag is still with us.
When the confederate flag was being designed, there were those who didn’t think it went far enough in clearly communicating the truth behind the symbol. William Thompson, editor of the Savannah Daily Morning News, published these words on April 23, 1863.
As a people, we are fighting to maintain
the Heaven ordained supremacy
of the white man over the inferior
or colored race; a white flag would thus be
emblematical of our cause.
Our idea is simply to combine the present
battle flag with a pure white sheet.
Because Thompson’s idea did not become the official flag, some suggest the pure white sheet became the garments of the KKK.
Today, those who wave and wrap themselves in the confederate flag would have us believe it stands for some higher sense of historical heritage. They may believe it’s some kind of clever disguise. But it’s not. There is no false flag here. We see it for exactly what it is. And we see them for exactly who they are.
Beannacht,
Judith – judith@stonefires.com