I have never been a big fan of the Confederate battle flag; and with the exception of a major teenage crush on Daisy Duke of the “Dukes of Hazzard” television show, whenever I saw the flag it made me uncomfortable. So I have to give kudos to the people in South Carolina that showed leadership in removing the flag from the State Capitol and putting it in a museum where it belongs. However, it didn’t take a lot of brainpower to call for the removal of the flag. Anyone who has ever studied the history of the Confederate battle flag in the modern era knows it stood for racial discrimination and bigotry; two things that have never been good for Black folks. So now that the flag is removed, perhaps we can focus on more substantive issues impacting African-Americans.
For example, although the economy continues to recover, the Black unemployment rate remains disproportionately high. The national unemployment rate is about 5.6 percent, for Blacks it’s 9.6 percent. As much as people got worked up over the Confederate battle flag it would be nice if they got as worked up over getting people to work. Of course to get them to work, we need to get them an education.
And when it comes to education, once again, it seems real easy to get worked up over a flag, it would be nice if people got worked up over the plight of urban education. You would think giving parents a choice, vouchers and the opportunity to get their kids in a school that best fits their type of learning would be something folks would take to the streets everyday demanding from their local elected officials. Maybe if somebody put a Confederate battle flag on a voucher folks would get more worked up.
Of course, if folks had access to quality education, we wouldn’t have such a problem with crime. It’s no big secret that when it comes to homicides, the Black-on-Black crime rate is about 93 percent. Blacks are more likely to be victims of crime and the incarceration rates for Blacks aren’t anything to be proud of. But hey, the Confederate battle flag no longer flies on the state grounds in South Carolina. I am sure that will be of great comfort to a weeping grandmother as she cries over her grandson’s body who just got shot at 16th and Tibbs, 10th and Sherman or 42nd and Post Road.
But then again, when it comes to crime, jobs and the economy, none of this would be possible without the breakdown of the Black family. As the intact Black family becomes as scarce as the Confederate battle flag, we end up with the Black poverty rate floating around 27 percent. That number is closer to 47 percent if we look at single women with children. It’s no big secret the best way to avoid poverty is to finish high school, if you can get a post-secondary education, wait until you’re married to have children and get job. And those are much easier to do with an intact family unit. And as someone who supports same-sex marriage, I will take an intact family in anyway I can get it.
So what’s the moral of today’s story? Yes, is it a “victory” that the Confederate battle flag has been removed from the grounds of South Carolina’s state capitol. But there are much bigger fights that still remain to be fought and require a lot more brainpower and effort than simply taking a flag off a pole and putting it in a museum.
Abdul-Hakim Shabazz is an attorney, political commentator and publisher of IndyPolitics.org. You can email comments to abdul@IndyPolitics.org.
