#46, I think that the comment posted by #44 will enlighten you greatly, since this person seems to really be one of the few on here that actually gets the history, and knows what they are talking about

Maybe I'm being a bit slow but I don't understand what point the T Shirt is trying to make. 'If this T Shirt offends you.. you need a history lesson'. What history lesson? Could anyone enlighten me? I was always under the impression that the ecomonic system the Confederacy was defending was based on the slavery and subjugation of its black population.

I've been trying to find a Union shirt that could be considered racist in proper context, as the Confederate one rightly is by the black students this little shit's in class with, and I still can't find it. Part of it may be that I can't really find a Union shirt, because the North decided to move on with its culture, instead of continuing to promote a racist agenda.

"Celebrating heritage" is the biggest line of shit I've ever heard--what heritage, you obese, uneducated, poor (the stats back all of these "generalizations"--yes, they do) people who cling to your guns and bibles and claim Christian values while continuing to promote a racist past? Public lynchings? Ownership of humans? Beautiful fields of cotton? Pigs? Give me a fucking break.

I think it's interesting that a little yankee boy want's to wear the shirt, and if he has an interest in Confederate history that's great.

He also might like to know that the Confederate Secretary of State, Judah P Benjamin was Jewish, and that he was the first Jew to be a cabinit member in all of North America, AND he was called "the brains of the Confederacy." He also might like to know that thousands of free blacks fought honorably for the south along with Hispanics from Texas, and the Cherokee from Oklahoma. Cherokee Indian, Stand Waite was a General in the Confederate Army.

I am a little concerned about what he's being taught in history though. The South was simply fighting for our independence, for limited government, low taxes, the constitution and liberty as was set up by their fathers, and grandfathers in 1776. Jefferson Davis said he would rather leave the country with the constitution than stay in it without it.

Back to the issue. The Battle Flag (not the "stars and bars") is simply a flag in which thousands of Southern men and women fought, bled, and died under for the protection of their homeland and rights. Today it is viewed as a proud symbol of our Soutrhern Heritage and our brave ancestors. Although, it has been mistreated and misused, but those same groups who abuse our flag also use and abuse the U.S. flag which has flown on every slave ship that ever came here, has flown over legalized slavery, flown over the removal of the Indians from their native land to Oklahoma, has flown over the invasion, pillaging, murdering, and raping of the South(including all southerners black-white), has flown over the slaughter of the plains indians and many other terrible things. Tell me which is more offensive?

can't we get rid of this flag already?

there, I said. Get rid of it.

I've been to NASCAR races and they don't like the flag flown and I'm FROM N.C.

While t-shirts with images of mass murderers like Mao or Che are considered chic & are worn with pride.

#8 - great name. You're a head of cabbage indeed.

If the south won the war, it would have been an epic and righteous struggle over state's rights.

Since they lost, it was fought of what the North says it was: slavery.

We've all had to use that rest stop in South Carolina and we've all walked past that shirt in the gift shop. In that context, we shook our heads and moved on, but here, it becomes a huge stink. Some jews wear cowboy hats and some jews dig NASCAR. I've always wondered about THEM.

In japan, the swastika is a Shinto symbol of life. You can see it on many Shinto temples.

Why is it when I wear my "Arbeit Mach Frei" shirt - I'm called an Anti-Semite. I'm just expressing the importance of hard work.

Smartass has the right to ask for a beating if he wants. But, since it seems thats NOT what he wants, he should stop being a little jackass and learn that school policies and the law arent going to protect him. You can't force people to be rational, ESPECIALLY CHILDREN. What is he after? Clearly he knows he already has the RIGHT to wear it, but why would he want to in light of the bullshit it has caused him? Wear it on the weekends dude, you've got enough trouble making friends.

Polite New Yorker is right in saying that the Confederate flag should not be on par wit the Swastika.

Why not? After all, the swastika had a history going back thousands of years, and was used as a good symbol by different groups ranging from Romans to Hindus and Buddhists before it was appropriated by the Nazis. It has more of a positive record than a negative one, if we look at the history. If you walk into a synagogue wearing a swastika, which context will people take?

The kid isn't showing any sensitivity or understanding how the symbol he has chosen will be taken. Whether or not he sees it as a racist symbol, unfortunately, he's not in the south and that isn't how it is taken here. Technically he has a right to wear the shirt wherever he wants, but by the same token, everyone else has a right to their own opinions and the right to be offended and question his lack of judgment and cultural sensitivity.

The Confederate flag should not be a symbol for racism but sadly it is. I'm from North Carolina and see these on shirts, trucks, cars, and houses frequently. People there don't exactly interpret it as racist. Black or white. Its not exactly a peace symbol but its accepted.

It only became a symbol for hate when the KKK and all of their idiotic and racist followers adopted it.

The kid isn't helping anything though.

Polite New Yorker is right in saying that the Confederate flag should not be on par wit the Swastika.

Plus the Civil War wasn't originally fought for slavery.

The shirt is definitely offensive. But he still has the right to wear it. At the same time, he'll have to deal with the consequences.

Personally, I'm fine with him wearing it to school if its not disruptive, even though its disgusting.

During the Civil War, New Yorkers by and large supported the rights of the Southern states to seceed, so historically speaking, a t-shirt of the Confederate battle emblem is not entirely out-of-place in the five boroughs. Union troops were rushed to New York City from Gettysburg to help quell the Draft Riots of 1863. Jews who lived in the South supported the C.S.A. like anyone else. (Confederate Treasurer and Attorney General Judah Benjamin was Jewish). Indeed, many people who use the Confederate battle flag today do so in a context that denotes beliefs that are racist or xenophobic. But that clearly is not always the case. Is 'The Dukes of Hazzard' a racist TV show/movie? Is Lynyrd Skynyrd a racist band? No. We know they are not because we see those uses of the Confederate flag in their proper context. So it should be with this student on Staten Island. It seems like he's the victim of "hate crimes" here. And even in its most offensive context, the Confederate flag should not be considered a symbol on par with the Swastika.

Like my friend on Fire Island in the 80s who flew a Soviet flag. All sorts of complaints.

Like from the neighbor who flew the British Union Jack.

My friend informed the Brit that unlike Britain, with whom we had two wars and which supported the Confederacy, the USA had never had a war with the Soviet Union. No Russian soldiers slaughtered Americans.

Don't you just hate Political Correctoids?

I think this kid doesn't have a clue what war really means.

[almost speechless at the stupidity of all involved]

south park (fine citation of it) got it right.

the kid deserves whatever's coming to him as long as he's dumb enough to wear it.

and what, exactly, is the shirt supposed to fucking mean? the flag, obviously, means something (indeed, great time for him to learn that symbols have meanings), but i'm totally unable to follow what the logic of the shirt is supposed to be.

If he can wear that tshirt, then the kids in brooklyn should just get Jump White People tshirts..

Wait, if his mom wants him not to be disrupted, why doesn't she just tell him to stop wearing the shirt. Also, he clearly was wearing the shirt to incite some sort of a reaction. Dumbass kid. Dumbass mom.