For About An Hour Bree Newsome Relieved South Carolina Of That Flag

It was bound to happen … last week, at the state capitol in Columbia, South Carolina, Bree Newsome defied the state laws that … for now … protect the Confederate flag and climbed the flag pole at the state house  to remove the Confederate flag.

When Bree was about halfway up the poll, State Capitol Police arrived on the scene and ordered her down; she refused, and continued climbing until she reached the top and took the flag down. Then, with the aid of a helper — James Tyson Black — she was lowered to the ground and arrested.

And, I say, "Good." 

Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad she did it; I’m all for non-violent civil disobedience, but Bree Newsome and James Black did break the law of the state and so they had to be arrested. And that’s what I told people on Facebook who railed against the idea, even when asked if they would be all right with someone scaling the state capitol dome and placing a Confederate flag up there — where one used to fly from 1962 to 2000. 

When people said that was different, I explained it wasn’t; it was taking your own action and ignoring law. And, sadly for them, someone said, "Rosa Parks broke the law and wasn’t arrested."

When I finished laughing, I replied, “Get a history book.”

For her part Bree Newsome said:

"We removed the flag today because we can't wait any longer. We can’t continue like this another day. It's time for a new chapter where we are sincere about dismantling white supremacy and building toward true racial justice and equality.”

I applaud her act, though I understand why she was arrested. And I love that, for at least about an hour, the state capitol building of South Carolina was Confederate flag free. It gave all of us a chance to feel that sense of accomplishment, if only for a moment.

The flag was raised again, though, just in time for a statehouse rally for those who seek to keep the flag right where it is; that rally numbered in the tens of people … 

That was quite a bit different than the number of people who showed up demanding that the flag be removed ...

... so I think Bree Newsome will get her wish, and I’ll get mine, and one day, in the not too distant future, the South Carolina General Assembly will vote to take down that flag. 

PS: Bree Newsome has been released from jail, though both she and James Tyson were charged with "defacing monuments on state capitol grounds" and could face up to 3 years in prison and up to a $5,000 fine. 

You can sign a ColorOfChange.org petition to drop the charges against Bree HERE. 

Michael Moore has offered to pay any legal fees resulting from this incident. 

NCRM

photos via ABC 7 New York