The Ku Klux Klan plans to hold a pro-
Confederate flag rally at the South Carolina
Capitol, where a man was arrested on Monday
night in a confrontation with anti-flag protesters
over a symbol associated with slavery.
The Civil War-era flag has emerged as a
flashpoint after a shooting that killed nine people
at a historic black church in Charleston, South
Carolina, during a Bible study session.
The suspected shooter, Dylann Roof, 21, who is
white, had posed with a Confederate flag in
photos posted on a website that also displayed a
racist manifesto attributed to him.
The June 17 shootings at the Emanuel African
Methodist Episcopal Church, in which all nine
victims were black, triggered calls for South
Carolina to stop displaying the Confederate flag
on the State House grounds in Columbia.
The massacre followed a year of debate over U.S.
race relations spurred by the killings of unarmed
black men by police officers in Ferguson,
Missouri; New York; and Baltimore.
The Loyal White Knights chapter of the Ku Klux
Klan, based in North Carolina, says it has gained
approval to rally at the State House on July 18.
"We’re standing up for the Confederacy," James
Spears, who holds the title "great titan" for the
group, said in a telephone interview on Tuesday.
He said speakers would address topics including
slavery. After the rally, the Klan plans to hold a
ceremonial cross-lighting ceremony on private
property.
South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, who has
called for the flag's removal, said in a statement
that the group was not welcome in the state.
The Ku Klux Klan, a white supremacist group, is
known for its history of violence and intimidation
against African-Americans.
The South Carolina Budget and Control Board
confirmed the Klan had reserved the State House
grounds for the event.
During an altercation at the State House late on
Monday, Nicholas Thompson, 25, of South
Carolina was arrested and charged with disorderly
conduct after confronting anti-Confederate flag
protesters, police said.
About 30 people were protesting the flag when 15
vehicles with pro-flag supporters stopped in the
street, authorities said.
The Charleston shooting has sparked a dialogue
across the U.S. South over the legacy of slavery
and its symbols, centering on the Confederate
flag.
Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said
on Tuesday she was appointing a commission to
review the Maryland city's Confederate statues
and historical items.
Confederate flag rally at the South Carolina
Capitol, where a man was arrested on Monday
night in a confrontation with anti-flag protesters
over a symbol associated with slavery.
The Civil War-era flag has emerged as a
flashpoint after a shooting that killed nine people
at a historic black church in Charleston, South
Carolina, during a Bible study session.
The suspected shooter, Dylann Roof, 21, who is
white, had posed with a Confederate flag in
photos posted on a website that also displayed a
racist manifesto attributed to him.
The June 17 shootings at the Emanuel African
Methodist Episcopal Church, in which all nine
victims were black, triggered calls for South
Carolina to stop displaying the Confederate flag
on the State House grounds in Columbia.
The massacre followed a year of debate over U.S.
race relations spurred by the killings of unarmed
black men by police officers in Ferguson,
Missouri; New York; and Baltimore.
The Loyal White Knights chapter of the Ku Klux
Klan, based in North Carolina, says it has gained
approval to rally at the State House on July 18.
"We’re standing up for the Confederacy," James
Spears, who holds the title "great titan" for the
group, said in a telephone interview on Tuesday.
He said speakers would address topics including
slavery. After the rally, the Klan plans to hold a
ceremonial cross-lighting ceremony on private
property.
South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, who has
called for the flag's removal, said in a statement
that the group was not welcome in the state.
The Ku Klux Klan, a white supremacist group, is
known for its history of violence and intimidation
against African-Americans.
The South Carolina Budget and Control Board
confirmed the Klan had reserved the State House
grounds for the event.
During an altercation at the State House late on
Monday, Nicholas Thompson, 25, of South
Carolina was arrested and charged with disorderly
conduct after confronting anti-Confederate flag
protesters, police said.
About 30 people were protesting the flag when 15
vehicles with pro-flag supporters stopped in the
street, authorities said.
The Charleston shooting has sparked a dialogue
across the U.S. South over the legacy of slavery
and its symbols, centering on the Confederate
flag.
Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said
on Tuesday she was appointing a commission to
review the Maryland city's Confederate statues
and historical items.
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