--- description: Confederate flag license plates have hit a 10-year high in Tennessee. There are more than 3,300 Sons of Confederate Veterans Plates. title: Confederate Flag License Plates Are Getting More Popular image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt22cf41c165fb27e0/698935b4656a3f8cc6bd5007/confederate-flags.jpeg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Tennessee](/tag/tennessee/) ## Tennessee Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Confederate Flag License Plates Are Getting More Popular in Tennessee ## Video: New Orleans Took Down Its Third Confederate Monument [Watch (HLS stream): New Orleans Took Down Its Third Confederate Monument](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/ooOcJq9a.m3u8) (0:55)  _Published 2017-05-17. Workers in New Orleans took down a Confederate monument to Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard early Wednesday, the third of four such monuments to come down in the city._  by [Jamie Ducharme](/author/jamie-ducharme/)  ## Jamie Ducharme Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Ducharme is a contributor to TIME. Jul 19, 2018 1:01 PM CUT  Ocala, Florida, USA - July 12, 2015: Confederate flag supporters rally at 17-mile parade that includes more than 2,000 vehicles. The event followed a decision to return the Confederate flag to a display at the Marion County government complex. Ocala, Florida, USA - July 12, 2015: Confederate flag supporters rally at 17-mile parade that includes more than 2,000 vehicles. The event followed a decision to return the Confederate flag to a display at the Marion County government complex.MichaelWarrenPix—Getty Images  by [Jamie Ducharme](/author/jamie-ducharme/)  ## Jamie Ducharme Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Ducharme is a contributor to TIME. Jul 19, 2018 1:01 PM CUT The popularity of Confederate flag license plates in Tennessee has hit a 10-year high, according to data from the state’s department of revenue. There were almost 3,300 active [Sons of Confederate Veterans plates](https://www.tn.gov/content/tn/revenue/title-and-registration/license-plates/available-license-plates/clubs-organizations.html "undefined") in Tennessee at the end of June, the [Nashville _Tennessean_](https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/2018/07/18/tennessee-confederate-flag-license-plates-increase/790710002/ "undefined") reports. While that’s a small number overall — Tennessee has a [population of around 6.7 million](https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/tn "undefined"), and more than 5.6 million passenger license plates in circulation — it represents a 72% increase over the end of fiscal year 2015, the year [debates about the Confederate flag](http://time.com/3931716/south-carolina-legislature-confederate-flag/ "undefined") broke out in earnest, according to the newspaper. Some proceeds from sales of the plate, which has the Confederate flag on the left side, benefit the Tennessee chapter of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, a Confederate pride non-profit. The vanity plate has been issued since 2004 and comes with an annual fee of $61.50\. The Sons of Confederate Veterans earned almost $58,000 from the plates in fiscal year 2018, the _Tennessean_ reports.  Tennessee Department of Revenue The debate over Confederate flags and monuments intensified in 2015, when Dylann Roof, a white man, [killed nine black worshippers in a South Carolina church](http://time.com/3967942/dylann-roof-federal-hate-crimes/ "undefined"). Roof, who was [convicted of 33 counts of murder, attempted murder and hate crimes in 2016](http://time.com/4603863/dylann-roof-verdict-guilty/ "undefined"), was an avowed white supremacist and had posted photos online of himself posing with Confederate memorabilia. Since the shooting, a number of Southern cities have [removed Confederate monuments and statues](http://time.com/4904679/confederate-monument-removal/ "undefined"), in some cases [sparking backlash and protests](http://time.com/3981442/confederate-flag-rally-in-georgia/ "undefined") from supporters. A representative from the Sons of Confederate Veterans could not immediately be reached for comment by TIME, but told the _Tennessean_ that the spike in its plate’s popularity likely stems from what the groups believes to be attacks on Confederate history. “Every time that some of our history that we’re so proud of has been attacked, people have gone out, and probably some members who had license plates but quit renewing have gone back and put them back on their vehicle,” Division Commander James Patterson told the newspaper. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5342879/tennessee-confederate-flag-license-plate/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5342879/tennessee-confederate-flag-license-plate/"},"headline":"Confederate Flag License Plates Are Getting More Popular in Tennessee","datePublished":"2018-07-19T13:01:28.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T04:57:40.914Z","description":"They've hit a 10-year spike in popularity","url":"https://time.com/5342879/tennessee-confederate-flag-license-plate/","keywords":["Tennessee","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt22cf41c165fb27e0/698935b4656a3f8cc6bd5007/confederate-flags.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Jamie Ducharme","jobTitle":"Ducharme is a contributor to TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/jamie-ducharme/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt22cf41c165fb27e0/698935b4656a3f8cc6bd5007/confederate-flags.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Confederate Flags and Pickup Trucks","caption":"Confederate Flags and Pickup Trucks","creditText":"MichaelWarrenPix—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/tennessee/","name":"Tennessee"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5342879/tennessee-confederate-flag-license-plate/","name":"Confederate Flag License Plates Are Getting More Popular in Tennessee"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"New Orleans Took Down Its Third Confederate Monument","description":"Workers in New Orleans took down a Confederate monument to Gen. 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