A flag fight is brewing in southern Florida
We read:
“Members of the Miami-Dade branch of the NAACP want the Confederate flag banned from the Homestead-Miami Motor Speedway, and they will meet Thursday to decide whether to boycott a NASCAR race slated there for November…
But officials at NASCAR and the raceway say there’s little they can do to prevent spectators from displaying or waving the Confederate flag. NASCAR spokesman Ramsey Poston told FOXNews.com that NASCAR’s “longstanding policy” prohibits displays of the Confederate flag on its cars, uniforms, licensed merchandise or in advertisements….
Homestead-Miami Motor Speedway President Curtis Gray said spectators are not permitted to wave large flags of any sort in the stands because of safety concerns, and to prevent them from obstructing the view.
He said Confederate flag items are not sold or officially displayed throughout the 65,000-seat raceway, but there’s no official ban on spectators bringing miniature flags to the track, or wearing T-shirts emblazoned with the symbol. “… we don’t regulate the lawful behavior of our fans or prohibit free speech and expression of our guests,” Gray told FOXNews.com. “We can’t tell people what to wear. Where do you start? Where does it end, as far as individual expression?”
Brandon Hensler, a spokesman for American Civil Liberties Union’s Florida chapter, said bringing a Confederate flag to the race or any public event would be protected speech. “If someone wants to show up with a shirt like that, there’d be no legal recourse for that,” Hensler said. “Unless there’s a specific threat, all speech is protected.”…
Chuck McMichael, commander in chief of Sons of the Confederate Veterans, a Tennessee-based group that promotes Confederate heritage, said the flag fight stems from last year’s Veterans Day parade when some attendees objected to Confederate Army uniforms and flags displayed by participants. As a result, some Greater Homestead/Florida City residents sought to have the organization banned from future events, McMichael said.
But any attempts to block Confederate flags at Homestead-Miami Motor Speedway will be met with “some action,” McMichael said, including the possibility of counter protests. “Any time somebody starts talking about that, of course there’s cause for concern,” McMichael told FOXNews.com. “The bottom line is I don’t think they should ban [Confederate flags] because there’s nothing wrong with them. It’s just people showing pride in their heritage.”
Interesting to see the ACLU on the right side for once.
Posted by John Ray. For a daily critique of Leftist activities, see DISSECTING LEFTISM. To keep up with attacks on free speech see TONGUE-TIED. Also, don’t forget your daily roundup of pro-environment but anti-Greenie news and commentary at GREENIE WATCH . Email me (John Ray) here
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Posted by JonJayRay on May 28, 2009 9:18 am
» Filed Under 1st Amendment, ACLU, Constitution, News, Political Correctness, Unconstitutional, Viewpoint discrimination
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