Knowing One's Place and Other Symbols

I am still somewhat astonished at the speed with which support for the display of the Confederate battle flag on public property has collapsed. Mississippi's vote to remove the symbol from their flag came surprisingly quickly. I welcome this development. 

The Economist surprised me, though, by giving the story very little space in its most recent issue. Just a photo and a caption. 

Seriously, that's all they wrote. 

The Confederate battle flag represents a lot of ugly messages, perhaps the most compelling one that I follow is the damning, menacing one suggesting that people of color keep their place. An articulate essay on this can be found here: Essay in New York Times. 

Before I get too happy that this accursed symbol is coming down, I might need to consider what symbol (or symbols) is coming to replace it. I'm troubled this spring and summer by images of protesters carrying firearms quite visibly. For instance, protesters arguing that Michigan's governor open up the state came to their protests brandishing AR-15s. This past weekend, militia groups came to Gettysburg to counter protesters they thought were set to destroy monuments and flags. Of course many came armed with assault rifles. 

Is the assault rifle the new Confederate battle flag? Is this the new symbol brandished by the majority to menace outside groups into minding their place? A news story from April caught my eye in which a political leader urged protesters against government-mandated lockdowns in his state to leave Confederate battle flags at home in order to present a more respectable image. I don't know, though, if protesters there showed up in camouflage and with AR-15s. 

The lesson for me here is that white supremacy doesn't vanish. It's a disease, a plague, on our society. And it will find ways to manifest itself even as it (hopefully) becomes smaller and less mighty. So I should be humble and watchful as I celebrate the fall of Confederate banners from many segments of American life. Out of sight doesn't mean out of mind.