CALHOUN — More than 500 vehicles flying the Confederate battle flag or some variation showed up at the Calhoun Wal-Mart on Saturday for a Southern Pride Don’t Hide rally.
Friends Paige Kuykendall and Katrina Smith of Cartersville, said they organized the event to show pride in the flag.
“We are aggravated at the slurs and the whole ‘white people are racists for supporting the Confederate flag’ conversations people are having,” Smith said. “We wanted to show that everyone who supports the Confederate flag is not a racist, and we are tired of being stereotyped. Having our history and our heritage taken away is not right.”
Uproar over the Confederate flag has been brewing for weeks, since Dylann Roof allegedly shot and killed nine worshipers at a predominantly black church in Charleston, South Carolina.
Roof posted photos of himself and the Confederate flag on social media sites.
The tone at the rally Saturday was peaceful, with a large, diverse crowd including whites, blacks and Hispanics.
Thomas Jewel, from Cartersville, spoke passionately about the Confederate flag.
“As a black man, I am very proud of my Southern heritage,” said Jewel. “You know, people keep trying to tie this to slavery, to the Civil War, and black men fought for the Confederacy. Many black people are proud of that heritage. This is not about hate and it’s not about slavery, this is about our heritage.”
The organizers of the event said the response they received was overwhelmingly positive.
“The most negative thing that happened today was Wal-Mart asking us to leave,” said Smith. “We chose Wal-Mart because the organization took the flags off the shelves and refused to sell them.”
As the debate over the flags spread to other states, Smith says the protests will continue. “We plan on having as many as we need to get the word out that we are serious about our heritage and our flag.”
Calhoun Times Managing Editor Brandi Owczarz contributed to this report.