Things have been quiet since the last push in 2020 during the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement.
For the last seven years the Committee for Justice, Equality, and Fairness have been speaking out against the Confederate flag and monument being on county property.
“It harkens back to the Confederacy in a time when people of color were not dealt with justly. That message continues at the current time. We believe that it’s impossible for a person of color to receive justice, equal justice in a courthouse that has a Confederate flag and monument on the courthouse lawn” Chair of Committee Mike Bowden said.
The monument and flag have been a point of contention for years. The local committee has been fighting for the removal for seven years.
In 2018, the county held a referendum to remove the flag and monument from the courthouse. 65% of the voters voted to keep it.
In 2020, a protest against the monument and flag turned disorderly. Shortly after, the county commission voted to keep the monument and flag.
Victoria Crystal’s ancestors were slaves.
“That puts a different spin on it for me, you know, and it would that’s the thing that says to me, just destroy it would break it up into a tiny thousand yea know But on the other hand, I don’t know why they are proud of their ancestors fighting in this war, but they are,” Victoria Crystal who serves as the media relations for the committee said.
Instead of destroying, the committee is trying to compromise.
“That’s the thing that they need to remember is that we’re not trying to destroy, we’re saying relocate, let’s find some common ground here but don’t just dismiss us, we are also Walton County,” Crystal said.
Committee members are partnering with nationwide organizations to have more allies and spread their message to more people.
“We’ve partnered with the Southern Poverty Law Center, which has most recently provided us a grant to fund posting billboards to educate and help people join us in our efforts to remove the Confederate flag,” Bowden said.
They’re also planning to return to the commission sometime this Spring and ask for the monument and flag to be removed.
The monument was built around 1871. It was the first of its kind in the state of Florida.
Ongoing efforts to ‘Move the Monument’ in Walton County
WALTON COUNTY, Fla. (WMBB) – The effort to remove the Confederate monument and flag from the Walton County Courthouse rises and falls like the tide. Things have been quiet since the last push…
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. I know how hard my life has been and I know that people don't really care about any of that but if I ignore or don't care about the struggles of other people then that is on me. If you read my thoughts in this forum I think you will find that I have an ability to learn and change my strong opinions about many things. The more I live and learn the more I realize how important change is. We exist at a time when there is a movement to stop change. I get that change is hard. I get that change comes with fear. This movement is manipulating our fear for a dangerous purpose: Power. We The People are being reduced to negative emotions which are much easier to control. I hope that We The People will learn how to manage change into something that is more reasonable. It is true that if you give an inch human nature will take a mile so we have to manage that as well. I sometimes feel that I don't fit in well with either side of change because we are being told to take a side. All I can figure out about any of that is moderate behavior as it relates to change or anything else makes the most sense. Move the monument and flags in order to respect, protect and learn from our history...
