Editor, Gazette-Journal:

Take down the flags. Please. You know which flags I mean. 

Saturday I went to May Faire in Mathews County. The organizers had made a conscious effort to appeal to a variety of people. Organizers and performers were African American and white, as is our community.

But walking out of the building where pictures of local veterans were displayed, I saw a tall flagpole prominently displaying a Confederate flag. The pole was in a truck parked on the street, and the organization associated with it had tables set up outside a business fronting it. The flag had nothing to do with May Faire, but because of its position, it looked like it was the official emblem.

In fact, the Confederate flag was originally an emblem of a war waged to allow states, including Virginia, to perpetuate slavery. As a result, many see it as a symbol of terror and hatred. 

I decided to speak to the organization associated with the flag. As a white Southerner myself, I felt it to b...