{"id":41544,"date":"2017-09-07T08:00:02","date_gmt":"2017-09-07T14:00:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/?p=41544"},"modified":"2017-09-07T09:43:44","modified_gmt":"2017-09-07T15:43:44","slug":"view-from-the-balcony-of-statues-and-flags","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/view-from-the-balcony-of-statues-and-flags\/","title":{"rendered":"View From the Balcony: Of Statues and Flags"},"content":{"rendered":"

“<\/em>Homo sapiens are the species that invents symbols in which to invest passion and authority, then forgets that symbols are inventions.“<\/em> – Joyce Carol Oates<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

I ran into Jesus on The Balcony at City Grocery a few days ago. I ordered my standard greyhound and a glass of wisdom, and brought him some water in a wine glass. As usual he stirred the water with his left index finger and voila<\/em>! Wine appeared. A cabernet. After a few sips I opened up a can of worms.<\/span><\/p>\n

So, Jesus, what do you think about all the hullabaloo over taking down the monuments to the Confederacy?<\/span><\/p>\n

I think it\u2019s high time you Southerners dealt with it.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Oh.<\/span><\/p>\n

Oh what?<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t know you\u2019d be so direct about it.<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019m always direct about things that matter.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

So what do you think? You have to know about it. It\u2019s in all the papers and on the news just about every day.<\/span><\/p>\n

I don\u2019t read newspapers much and I don\u2019t watch TV. Got sick of trying to keep up with the Kardashians.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

But surely you have an opinion about taking down the monuments.<\/span><\/p>\n

Of course I do. \u00a0I also have an opinion about your state flag.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u2026and that is\u2026?<\/span><\/p>\n

Get rid of it.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Get rid of it? Just like that?<\/span><\/p>\n

Just like that.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

But it\u2019s important, Jesus. There\u2019s a lot of heritage in that flag and those monuments.<\/span><\/p>\n

You are correct, sir. They represent the heritage of the belief that one man can own another man, tear him away from his wife and children, force him to do hard labor for your benefit, beat him if he doesn\u2019t toe the line, and rape his wife at will.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Damn! You don\u2019t have to get so upset over it.<\/span><\/p>\n

Why the hell not? You oughta be.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Well, pulling down statues and flags destroys history.<\/span><\/p>\n

You don\u2019t even know your history, Randy. Mississippi didn\u2019t have an official state flag till 1861. Even then it wasn\u2019t the one you\u2019ve got now.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re pulling my leg.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t care to touch your leg, Randy.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

I wasn\u2019t gonna to bring up race, but since you broached the topic, we\u2019ve come a long way in that department, mister!<\/span><\/p>\n

Might I remind you that you\u2019re the one who asked me about your icons? You can\u2019t expect black people to believe that you really wanna heal old wounds while you\u2019ve got a death grip on symbols of whips and nooses. You can whitewash your idols all you want. The blood\u2019s still gonna shine through. It always will.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

You say you wanna bring the races closer together \u2013 that your faith tells you to. Right?<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAbsolutely!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Then stop treating flags and statues like they came down from Mt. Sinai with Moses. G_d didn\u2019t have anything to do with it. Y\u2019all made \u2018em up.\u00a0 You\u2019re blind, man, and I don\u2019t think you really wanna see. You\u2019re preaching peace and love while you\u2019re bowing down to the idols of injustice and oppression. Wake up! You\u2019re letting a piece of cloth and towers of stone stand in the way of true reconciliation.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

It looks to me like your symbols are more important to you than people. When that happens you need to get rid of \u2018em. Send all the monuments to Vicksburg. \u00a0But if you keep your Confederate statue on the Courthouse lawn raise one of a Union soldier looking north on the opposite side of the lawn. Tell the whole story and stop your damn revisionism.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBut Jesus\u2026\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

No more buts, Randy. I loved all the people in the Civil War no matter which side they were on. I loved all the people in the Civil Rights Movement. The same\u2019s true for the protesters in Charlottesville. But could you imagine me walking around waving a Nazi flag?<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s not the same thing.<\/span><\/p>\n

Tell that to the eleven million Jews who were murdered under the shadow of the swastika. So could you? Could you imagine me standing proudly beneath a symbol that presided over lynchings?<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI guess not. No.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Then why in the name of all things holy would you do it?<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

I think I need another drink.<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019ll bet you do. Keep on drinkin\u2019 the Kool-Aid, Randy. Keep on drinkin\u2019 the Kool-Aid.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

And that\u2019s the view from The Balcony.\u00a0\"The<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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