Rallies Held in Support of Confederate Flag

The Confederate flag may have been lowered in South Carolina and Alabama, but fights over it remain elsewhere in the South.

In Ocala, Florida, an estimated 2,000 cars, trucks and motorcycles rallied in support of keeping the flag in front of a local government building Sunday.

Participants in the Florida Southern Pride Ride wore T-shirts that said “Heritage, Not Hate” and flew Confederate flags from their vehicles during the ride, according to the Ocala Star-Banner.

Other rallies in support of the Confederate flag have been held in recent days in Knoxville, Tennessee; Loxahatchee Groves, Florida; and Oklahoma City.

The rallies came after the flag was lowered at the South Carolina capitol in response to a deadly shooting at a Charleston church. The flag was also removed from the Alabama capitol in June.

Meantime, the state of Tennessee will celebrate the birthday of Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest, the first Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan, on Monday.

Republican Gov. Bill Haslam signed a proclamation last month to honor Forrest on July 13, a tradition in the state for decades, according to CBS News.

Some state lawmakers have complained about the proclamation, while the Memphis City Council recently voted to move the remains of Forrest and his wife from a city park.

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