The Oct. 17 letter to the editor by Nancy Fairbanks attempts to explain away the display of the Confederate flag during a parade supporting Donald Trump and asks us to believe that the man who flew the flag is not political, did not know that there was any controversy regarding that Confederate flag, and was just a fan of the “Dukes of Hazard.”  I call BS as to all of it, and everyone in attendance who condoned the flag’s display should be ashamed of themselves.  First, the flag was prominently flown above the vehicle and alongside a Trump flag. Nonpolitical people do not attend Trump rallies or parades. Non-political people do not fly Trump flags on their personal vehicles. This man knew what he was doing, Nancy. That he is married to a woman of color and has a biracial child is of no moment and is no excuse.  Second, to pretend not to know that the Confederate flag is controversial is asinine. A fan of the “Dukes of Hazzard” would know that TV Land stopped showing reruns in 2015 in response to racial violence committed by a self-proclaimed white supremacist, Dylann Roof. Roof, whose manifesto included a racist diatribe and photos of him brandishing weapons and waving the Confederate flag, murdered nine Black congregants in a South Carolina church. Within a week of the mass murder, Walmart, Amazon, Sears, and eBay announced they would stop selling Confederate flag merchandise. And the Confederate flag was removed from South Carolina’s state capitol. Then-Gov. Nikki Haley, a Republican, supported its removal, as did fellow Republican Govs. Jeb Bush, Rick Perry and Scott Walker. South Carolina’s Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott also stood in support of Gov. Haley’s decision, as did South Carolina Republican member of the House of Representatives Mark Sanford.  Finally, in the wake of the George Floyd murder in Minneapolis in May 2020, both the Defense Department and NASCAR banned the display of the Confederate flag, recognizing that the flag was perceived as a symbol of white supremacy and stoked racial animus. Unless this Trump supporter has been in a coma for the past eight years, there is absolutely no chance that he was unaware the Confederate flag was problematic.   And finally, I’m GenX. I admit I idolized Daisy Duke. I wore short shorts and knotted up my T-shirt as a child. My brothers and I would terrorize the neighbors by drifting our Big Wheels in their driveways and racing in the middle of the street. We loved playing the Dukes of Hazzard and I still cherish those memories. The General Lee is iconic. It has its place in our collective memories, not unlike Cabbage Patch kids and Garbage Pail Cards.  Had this Trump supporter been hanging out of the side of a fiery orange 1969 Dodge Charger with no doorhandles, I suspect the car’s paint job would have sparked less outrage than the proud display of the Confederate flag — which was placed at the same level as the American flag and a Trump flag.   “If you don’t condemn it, you condone it.” My mom drilled that into my head as a child and I cannot and will not sit quietly by while members of my community defend the Confederacy and try to pretend like we did not see exactly what we saw in that Trump parade. The Confederate flag is not about Southern heritage — it’s about rebellion. In 1861, the rebellion was against the possibility that the federal government would no longer allow human beings to be bought and sold like property. In 2024, it’s about rebellion against “the elites” and “the deep state” and “owning the libs.” And that is precisely why those who support Trump are comfortable with its display, despite knowing that the flag is a hate symbol that divides us. We, as the regular folks just trying to go to work, pay our mortgages, and raise our kids in Awesometown, cannot condone this behavior.  Jennifer Dolan Heinisch Valencia The post Jennifer Dolan Heinisch | The Confederacy and Gaslighting appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.