Confederate flags left near Rev. Martin Luther King's church

[webfact]

Confederate flags left near Rev. Martin Luther King's church
By KATE BRUMBACK

ATLANTA (AP) — Police worked Thursday to identify two white males who were caught on surveillance camera laying Confederate battle flags neatly on the ground near the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s church.

It was the latest provocative act involving the Civil War-era symbol since nine black church members were gunned down during Bible study in South Carolina, and it happened in the heart of an area devoted to the slain civil rights leader, near his birthplace, his crypt and a center devoted to preserving his legacy.

Atlanta police Chief George Turner said his agency was working with federal authorities and they have not determined what charges might be levied. Turner said they have not ruled out a hate crime, though Georgia has no state hate crimes law.

An officer from the Atlanta FBI's joint terrorism task force was on the scene "to better determine if any specific threats were received" and to provide support to Atlanta police, FBI Special Agent Steve Emmett said in an email.

The Rev. Raphael Warnock, senior pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church, called placing the flags on church grounds a "terroristic threat."

"This act by a cowardly and misguided individual or individuals is provocative to say the least. It ought to get the attention not only of black people but of freedom-loving people," he said. "To place Confederate flags on the campus of Ebenezer Baptist Church after this horrific act in Charleston, in the wake of all this happening in our country, whatever the message was, it was clearly not about heritage, it was about hate."

King preached at Ebenezer Baptist Church on Auburn Avenue, once a bustling center of commerce for Atlanta's African-American businesses and residents. The area is home to the historic church and a new church building where the congregation now meets and where the flags were placed. Nearby is the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, and all of those buildings are just a short walk from the home of King's grandparents, where he lived for the first 12 years of his life.

Atlanta police Officer Gary Wade said a maintenance worker discovered the flags at 6 a.m. Thursday and notified the National Park Service, which operates the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site, which is adjacent to the church.

The flags weren't stuck in the ground but instead laid flat. One was placed near a bell tower under a poster that said: "Black Lives Matter." The slogan, which has been spray-painted on Confederate monuments across the South this summer, has become part of a movement of civil rights supporters who say police treat blacks unfairly.

Two former Georgia prosecutors said it might be tough to prosecute the people responsible.

"It was certainly divisive and not acceptable behavior the way it was done, but I cannot find a criminal act to it," said Bob Keller, the Clayton County district attorney for nearly three decades until 2004.

Ken Hodges, who served as Dougherty County district attorney from 1997 to 2008, said a charge of vandalism to a place of worship might be possible.

Warnock, the church pastor, said black clergy from around the country were gathered at Ebenezer on Thursday to discuss the role of black churches in social justice issues, including mass incarceration. The placing of the flags only strengthens their resolve, he said.

Superintendent Judy Forte of the National Park Service said her office at the King historic site received a threatening phone message the day before the shooting at the South Carolina church. The message was rambling and "very alarming and they did mention coming here to the historic site," she said. There was no indication that was connected to the flags.

At some point within the last two years, a Confederate battle flag was placed at the tomb of King and his wife Coretta across the street from the church, said Forte, who couldn't recall exactly when that happened.

"It was disturbing and sickening, but unfortunately not terribly surprising," Warnock said of the latest incident. "We've seen this kind of ugliness before."
___

Associated Press writer Jeff Martin contributed to this report.


-- (c) Associated Press 2015-07-31

[Publicus]

Sons of the Confederacy

The distinguished MLK center has handled this and these things well.

[stevenl]

Very provocative, but I think not illegal.

[zaphod reborn]

I agree with all efforts to remove the confederate flag from any government property.

However, I don't get where the police would be involved in this incident. There's no crime on the state or federal level. That is evident from this statement: "Atlanta police Chief George Turner said his agency was working with federal authorities and they have not determined what charges might be levied. Turner said they have not ruled out a hate crime, though Georgia has no state hate crimes law." So, Georgia doesn't have a hate crime law. The placing of the flag does not rise to the level of any state crime, apparently not even a trespass.

As for the federal hate crime law, 18 USC Sec. 249 is only met if there is bodily injury through the use of a weapon or fire. There is no bodily injury from placing the flag, so the feds have nothing to investigate.

Moreover, I am deeply concerned about the free speech infringement that results from any attempt to investigate this incident as a crime. Essentially, a criminal investigation acts as a dampening of the right to use the flag either as a symbol of political expression or respect for a historical event. The US Supreme Court has upheld the right to burn the US flag as expression of political free speech. As long as the flag is not being used in combination with a threat to cause bodily harm, its placement (other than on government lands) is protected by the First Amendment of the US Constitution. Shame on the police, both federal and state.

[EnglishJohn]

Send a white guy onto the streets at night in a black area and you will find out what hate crime is.

But I forgot, whites don't have the multitude of groups whose only purpose in life is to try and find events against minorities and shout about them.

People like me in the majority have no rights when it comes to racism and discrimination. Why is that acceptable ?.

[Steely Dan]

In other news a man walked past the Houses of Parliament waving an ISIS flag and the police did nothing. Now how many people have the confederates decapitated of late?

[Scott]

A racist post has been removed. Please stay on topic.

[Neurath]

Reckon the message being sent was similar to having placed a burning cross.

[ggt]

Although laying Confederate flags near King's church is offensive and divisive...it would be a stretch to arrest someone for something more than trespassing or some other meaningless misdemeanor...

The Pres and his former Attorney General hitman started stirring up the racial divide and should take full credit for the unrest the country is currently experiencing...

Where all of this is headed is anyone's guess...

There is no country in the world...that I am aware of...that does not have some form of discrimination between different groups of people...

It is a problem as old as mankind itself...

In your face acts...like using the Confederate flag to stir up trouble...does not help move the country forward...

[zaphod reborn]

Reckon the message being sent was similar to having placed a burning cross.

That's a stretch. Burning crosses are associated with lynchings and attacks on churches. I'm not aware of the confederate flag being associated with anything like that other than the civil war and southern rock concerts.

[Steely Dan]

Reckon the message being sent was similar to having placed a burning cross.

That's a stretch. Burning crosses are associated with lynchings and attacks on churches. I'm not aware of the confederate flag being associated with anything like that other than the civil war and southern rock concerts.

Indeed more Daisy Duke than David Duke.

Edited July 31, 2015 by Steely Dan

[Publicus]

 

Reckon the message being sent was similar to having placed a burning cross.

That's a stretch. Burning crosses are associated with lynchings and attacks on churches. I'm not aware of the confederate flag being associated with anything like that other than the civil war and southern rock concerts.

 

Omitting a great deal, to include armed insurrection and rebellion against the United States, slavery, secession, KKK, racism and a Confederacy rap sheet as long as my...arm.

Gen Robert E. Lee and Confederacy Prez Jefferson Davis lost their citizenship of the USA, recently restored by a forgiving Nation due to their fighting under the various Confederate flags.

I guess the lesson here might be that losers die hard.

[stevenl]

In other news a man walked past the Houses of Parliament waving an ISIS flag and the police did nothing. Now how many people have the confederates decapitated of late?

You mean the incident that was reported as you describe, but was later proven incorrect because there was no Isis flag?

[chuckd]

The flag incident is just more of the same under this President. Obama and Holder have done more to divide the races than any two people since reconstruction.

Perhaps the mythical General Sherman might be resurrected to march on Washington, DC, in an attempt to gain something for the black community. The problems for the black community are there, not in Georgia.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Is Black America Better Off Under Obama?

January 5, 2015

By Lauren Victoria Burke

NNPA Columnist

“Like the rest of America, Black America, in the aggregate, is better off now than it was when I came into office,” said President Obama on December 19, in response to a question by Urban Radio Networks White House Correspondent April Ryan.

What planet African Americans are doing “better off” on is unknown. What is known is that President Obama is about to leave office with African Americans in their worst economic situation since Ronald Reagan. A look at every key stat as President Obama starts his sixth year in office illustrates that.

- See more at: http://www.blackpressusa.com/is-black-america-better-off-under-obama/#sthash.PbnZGr8v.dpuf

[Publicus]

The flag incident is just more of the same under this President. Obama and Holder have done more to divide the races than any two people since reconstruction.

Perhaps the mythical General Sherman might be resurrected to march on Washington, DC, in an attempt to gain something for the black community. The problems for the black community are there, not in Georgia.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Is Black America Better Off Under Obama?

January 5, 2015

By Lauren Victoria Burke

NNPA Columnist

“Like the rest of America, Black America, in the aggregate, is better off now than it was when I came into office,” said President Obama on December 19, in response to a question by Urban Radio Networks White House Correspondent April Ryan.

What planet African Americans are doing “better off” on is unknown. What is known is that President Obama is about to leave office with African Americans in their worst economic situation since Ronald Reagan. A look at every key stat as President Obama starts his sixth year in office illustrates that.

- See more at: http://www.blackpressusa.com/is-black-america-better-off-under-obama/#sthash.PbnZGr8v.dpuf

It would be appropriate if there were something in our future at the thread about the Confederate Battle Flag or any Confederate flag defacing the church at the MLK center in Atlanta and the inadequacy of the host state Georgia to provide security and a respectful setting for the national shrine, whether in law or in practice.

The US Park Service which is a major presence at the Center is not an investigative agency per se nor is it an agency that sets out to control or contain racists deviants.

The Bubbas that placed the Confederate flags at the MLK Center church have the same freedom of expression as all Americans do. Even if their forbears fought against the US Constitution and continue to resist major aspects of it, the perps would maintain their freedom to express their redneck legacy and heritage as historical losers.

[stevenl]

The flag incident is just more of the same under this President. Obama and Holder have done more to divide the races than any two people since reconstruction.

Perhaps the mythical General Sherman might be resurrected to march on Washington, DC, in an attempt to gain something for the black community. The problems for the black community are there, not in Georgia.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Is Black America Better Off Under Obama?

January 5, 2015

By Lauren Victoria Burke

NNPA Columnist

“Like the rest of America, Black America, in the aggregate, is better off now than it was when I came into office,” said President Obama on December 19, in response to a question by Urban Radio Networks White House Correspondent April Ryan.

What planet African Americans are doing “better off” on is unknown. What is known is that President Obama is about to leave office with African Americans in their worst economic situation since Ronald Reagan. A look at every key stat as President Obama starts his sixth year in office illustrates that.

- See more at: http://www.blackpressusa.com/is-black-america-better-off-under-obama/#sthash.PbnZGr8v.dpuf

I'd say the Republicans have done everything they can to increase the divide by not accepting Obama from the beginning. The party and many of its representatives have shown how racist they are.

[sdanielmcev]

The flag incident is just more of the same under this President. Obama and Holder have done more to divide the races than any two people since reconstruction.

Perhaps the mythical General Sherman might be resurrected to march on Washington, DC, in an attempt to gain something for the black community. The problems for the black community are there, not in Georgia.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Is Black America Better Off Under Obama?

January 5, 2015

By Lauren Victoria Burke

NNPA Columnist

Like the rest of America, Black America, in the aggregate, is better off now than it was when I came into office, said President Obama on December 19, in response to a question by Urban Radio Networks White House Correspondent April Ryan.

What planet African Americans are doing better off on is unknown. What is known is that President Obama is about to leave office with African Americans in their worst economic situation since Ronald Reagan. A look at every key stat as President Obama starts his sixth year in office illustrates that.

- See more at: http://www.blackpressusa.com/is-black-america-better-off-under-obama/#sthash.PbnZGr8v.dpuf

I'd say the Republicans have done everything they can to increase the divide by not accepting Obama from the beginning. The party and many of its representatives have shown how racist they are.

You mean sorta like the libs did with, and still do, with Bush? This is a tempest in a teapot. But, hey if it gets the libs sputtering out their indignancies all over their computer screen, bring more. Of course if their was a sign that said, "Cil al da honkie," they'd claim, "That's their right!"

[ggt]

Although laying Confederate flags near King's church is offensive and divisive...it would be a stretch to arrest someone for something more than trespassing or some other meaningless misdemeanor...

The Pres and his former Attorney General hitman started stirring up the racial divide and should take full credit for the unrest the country is currently experiencing...

Where all of this is headed is anyone's guess...

There is no country in the world...that I am aware of...that does not have some form of discrimination between different groups of people...

It is a problem as old as mankind itself...

In your face acts...like using the Confederate flag to stir up trouble...does not help move the country forward...

The Pres and his former Attorney General hitman started stirring up the racial divide

Barack Obama was elected with just short of 70m votes and the electoral college plurality of 100, one of the greatest margins ever. Prez Obama is the first president since Eisenhower to be elected then re-elected with at least 51% of the popular vote. Prez Obama is in in fact the mainstream. meaning people who voted against him lost.

The right let loose the fart of racialism and from its outset have been pointing the finger at all the people around it that the rightwing doesn't like politically.

The weakness of Georgia laws in the matter of Confederate flags, one of which is on the Georgia state flag, is the failure of the state of Georgia and the majority of its citizen Bubbas.

Let it be a measure of relief to the rednecks that it's not yet time to re-call General Sherman to march again.

Barack Obama was elected with just short of 70m votes and the electoral college plurality of 100, one of the greatest margins ever. Prez Obama is the first president since Eisenhower to be elected then re-elected with at least 51% of the popular vote. Prez Obama is in in fact the mainstream. meaning people who voted against him lost.

Many people, myself included, voted for the politician Obama who promised many reforms which would have helped ALL the people of the US...

Disappointed in the POTUS performance and one sided agenda...many disillusioned voters would like to have their vote back...just go back to the mid-term elections to see what the country thinks of Obama's antics...Dems were soundly defeated...how did Obama react to a resounding disapproval...basically say that the vote did not matter and would not deter him from continuing his personal agenda at the expense of the majority people of the US...

America in general is not racist...many present day high level officials certainly appear to be...

[Publicus]

No matter how the right slices it, it's still baloney.

Because the current leaders of the Executive Branch haven't ever been less racist and less prejudiced, except perhaps when President Truman in 1948 desegregated the armed forces by his Executive Order (EXO9981).

It is the right that farts in church on this issue. It is the right that immediately cries out and points the finger.

[sdanielmcev]

The flag incident is just more of the same under this President. Obama and Holder have done more to divide the races than any two people since reconstruction.

Perhaps the mythical General Sherman might be resurrected to march on Washington, DC, in an attempt to gain something for the black community. The problems for the black community are there, not in Georgia.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Is Black America Better Off Under Obama?

January 5, 2015

By Lauren Victoria Burke

NNPA Columnist

Like the rest of America, Black America, in the aggregate, is better off now than it was when I came into office, said President Obama on December 19, in response to a question by Urban Radio Networks White House Correspondent April Ryan.

What planet African Americans are doing better off on is unknown. What is known is that President Obama is about to leave office with African Americans in their worst economic situation since Ronald Reagan. A look at every key stat as President Obama starts his sixth year in office illustrates that.

- See more at: http://www.blackpressusa.com/is-black-america-better-off-under-obama/#sthash.PbnZGr8v.dpuf

I'd say the Republicans have done everything they can to increase the divide by not accepting Obama from the beginning. The party and many of its representatives have shown how racist they are.

The only ones bringing up Obamas' race is the left. It is and was his policies, not his race. And nothing to do with the Northern Virginia battle flag.

[sdanielmcev]

No matter how the right slices it, it's still baloney.

Because the current leaders of the Executive Branch haven't ever been less racist and less prejudiced, except perhaps when President Truman in 1948 desegregated the armed forces by his Executive Order (EXO9981).

It is the right that farts in church on this issue. It is the right that immediately cries out and points the finger.

You mean of course except for the liberal NIMBYs that practice their own form of racism in their lily-white neighborhoods.

[chuckd]

No matter how the right slices it, it's still baloney.

Because the current leaders of the Executive Branch haven't ever been less racist and less prejudiced, except perhaps when President Truman in 1948 desegregated the armed forces by his Executive Order (EXO9981).

It is the right that farts in church on this issue. It is the right that immediately cries out and points the finger.

The extreme left is what seems to be doing the majority of the finger pointing on this thread.

[metisdead]

Inflammatory baiting posts have been removed.

[Publicus]

Just opened the window, got some very needed fresh sunny air while noticing the Confederate battle flag is gone.

The perps of the the battle flag offense at the MLK Center and church are losers. They keep declaring themselves as unmitigated losers, here, there, almost anywhere we see the rag displayed.

Edited August 1, 2015 by Publicus

[stevenl]

The flag incident is just more of the same under this President. Obama and Holder have done more to divide the races than any two people since reconstruction.

Perhaps the mythical General Sherman might be resurrected to march on Washington, DC, in an attempt to gain something for the black community. The problems for the black community are there, not in Georgia.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Is Black America Better Off Under Obama?

January 5, 2015

By Lauren Victoria Burke

NNPA Columnist

Like the rest of America, Black America, in the aggregate, is better off now than it was when I came into office, said President Obama on December 19, in response to a question by Urban Radio Networks White House Correspondent April Ryan.

What planet African Americans are doing better off on is unknown. What is known is that President Obama is about to leave office with African Americans in their worst economic situation since Ronald Reagan. A look at every key stat as President Obama starts his sixth year in office illustrates that.

- See more at: http://www.blackpressusa.com/is-black-america-better-off-under-obama/#sthash.PbnZGr8v.dpuf

I'd say the Republicans have done everything they can to increase the divide by not accepting Obama from the beginning. The party and many of its representatives have shown how racist they are.

You mean sorta like the libs did with, and still do, with Bush? This is a tempest in a teapot. But, hey if it gets the libs sputtering out their indignancies all over their computer screen, bring more. Of course if their was a sign that said, "Cil al da honkie," they'd claim, "That's their right!"

No, the approach to Bush is and has been from the beginning far more civilized than the outright racism that Obama has faced ever since he got elected.

[stevenl]

No matter how the right slices it, it's still baloney.

Because the current leaders of the Executive Branch haven't ever been less racist and less prejudiced, except perhaps when President Truman in 1948 desegregated the armed forces by his Executive Order (EXO9981).

It is the right that farts in church on this issue. It is the right that immediately cries out and points the finger.

The extreme left is what seems to be doing the majority of the finger pointing on this thread.

There is no extreme left on this thread nor in the US.

[stevenl]

The flag incident is just more of the same under this President. Obama and Holder have done more to divide the races than any two people since reconstruction.

Perhaps the mythical General Sherman might be resurrected to march on Washington, DC, in an attempt to gain something for the black community. The problems for the black community are there, not in Georgia.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Is Black America Better Off Under Obama?

January 5, 2015

By Lauren Victoria Burke

NNPA Columnist

Like the rest of America, Black America, in the aggregate, is better off now than it was when I came into office, said President Obama on December 19, in response to a question by Urban Radio Networks White House Correspondent April Ryan.

What planet African Americans are doing better off on is unknown. What is known is that President Obama is about to leave office with African Americans in their worst economic situation since Ronald Reagan. A look at every key stat as President Obama starts his sixth year in office illustrates that.

- See more at: http://www.blackpressusa.com/is-black-america-better-off-under-obama/#sthash.PbnZGr8v.dpuf

I'd say the Republicans have done everything they can to increase the divide by not accepting Obama from the beginning. The party and many of its representatives have shown how racist they are.

The only ones bringing up Obamas' race is the left. It is and was his policies, not his race. And nothing to do with the Northern Virginia battle flag.

Yes, republicans hide behind that.

[PHP87]

Terrorist threat?

Maybe a citation for littering.

[Publicus]

Terrorist threat?

Maybe a citation for littering.

The state of Georgia is holding its hands in the air saying it has no laws in this beyond perhaps trespass.

That the state of Georgia fails to provide minimal adequate security for this national site guided by the US Park Service is the sole and serious crime that has been identified at this point.

Putting the Confederate flag anywhere is indeed littering. But in this instance there is much more to it the state of Georgia chooses to ignore.

[Rancid]

As I recall the civil war wasn't about actually about slavery but other issues. Regardless slavery is the issue now most associated with it, so this act is both ignorant and tasteless.