The stink over the Rebel flag has Coast clergy reaching for disinfectant.
Symbols are terribly powerful.
I don't think that one has the visceral, negative image that the battle flag does. The Rev. Eddie Hartwell, pastor of St. James Baptist Church in Gulfport, used stronger language. It does not make sense to continue to do wrong. Hartwell, who also opposes flying the Rebel flag, said people have worked for at least six years to have it removed from the beach display, and he said that churches have historically provided political power for blacks. I don't take the pulpit for a political platform.