This past week thousands hundreds dozens five Virginia Flaggers turned up at Washington and Lee University to protest the university’s new policy concerning the display of the Confederate flag at Lee Chapel.
They were outnumbered by the flags they displayed.
They engaged passers-by, changing hearts and minds.
The media coverage of the event was all one could wish for. Flagger spokesperson Barry Isenhour, who is to red shorts what Susan Hathaway is to red blouses and dresses, shared his insights about the Lost Cause.
The following day Hathaway herself took time off from her non-appearances on the sidewalk by the VMFA to operate a booth by a reenactment. You can see how busy she was. There was also a Karen Cooper sighting, but people were disappointed to learn that surfer dude Grayson Jennings and Norwood “Tripp” “Shades” Lewis were nowhere to be seen. Their presence would have made at least a dozen Flaggers over several days.
No word on whether the Flagger bookstand sells copies of Connie’s Chastain’s latest dust jacket covers. The good news? This time there are more Flaggers than flags in the picture, which is an increasingly rare thing.
Somehow I don’t think this massive turnout will be enough to persuade anyone at Washington and Lee to change current policy. As to why Hathaway absents herself from sidewalk flagging, there’s been no explanation. Unfortunately for her there are no pictures of her outside of WLU for years past to recycle.
We have been assured that this spectacle will be repeated several times during the remainder of the fall semester at WLU. We wonder whether the results will be any different.
Are you angry enough yet? I’m sure the Flaggers are. As for the rest of us …
Crossroads 