I recently traveled back to South Carolina, the state of my birth, and was again reminded of the Confederate flag that still stands on the grounds of the State Capitol. I also spotted the flag posted in some private yards.

Today, as I watch the news, I find it ironic that so many people are up in arms about the proposed construction of an Islamic mosque two blocks away from the site of the destroyed World Trade Center.

Many are adamant, saying they won't stand to see built what they believe to be a symbol of and a monument to the religion that fostered the terrorists who murdered so many on that terrible day.

Some say it’s insensitive to the memories of those who died. To build a mosque so close to ground zero, they say, serves only to “needlessly offend."

I have to wonder where these oppositional voices are when the subject of the Confederate flag is argued.

Supporters of the flag say it is a symbol of Southern heritage.

Yet to African Americans, the flag symbolizes racist and separatist groups like the KKK, the Neo-Nazis and the Aryan Nation -- all groups that have used that emblem to symbolize their hatred and desired oppression of African Americans and other races they consider inferior.

To African Americans, the Confederate flag is a symbol of forced servitude. It is a hated reminder of the blood and tears our forefathers shed on the grounds of South Carolina State College, on the streets of Mississippi and Alabama, and in Georgia churches as black people struggled against a racist society.

To African Americans, you see, slavery is our 911.

It’s way past time for South Carolina to understand that the Confederate flag is a hateful symbol to people of color and only serves to "needlessly offend."

Instead, it seems the hammer only hurts when it is swung in the direction of white sensibilities.

Is there no empathy for the families of black victims who were lynched, raped and murdered, and who must daily view the hated symbol of those times wave over the state in which they live and pay taxes?

I agree with President Obama; the Muslims have a "right" to build their mosque. But is it expedient?

I ask the same, however, of those who would wave and defend the Confederate flag.

Our constitution guarantees to all Americans the right to liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Unfortunately it is unable to guarantee to each of us a measure of common sense and good will.
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D. Barbara McWhite grew up in York County, S.C., and lives in Orange Park, Fla., with her husband and cat.
 

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