If you thought California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) suggesting that Nike’s decision to not sell Betsy Ross-themed shoes was patriotic was bad, wait until you check out this next story.
Democratic presidential candidate Julián Castro was asked about the controversy during an interview with CBS News Wednesday, and he used the opportunity to equate the Besty Ross flag to… the Confederate flag:
“Yeah. Well, you know, I was glad to see that and my hope is that that they didn’t just do it to do it, that they understand the significance there. And look there are a lot of things in our history that are still very painful,” Castro told CBS News on Wednesday.
“The Confederate flag that still flies in some places and is used as a symbol, and I believe that we need to move toward an inclusive America that understands that pain, that doesn’t wipe it away from history in the sense that still belongs in a museum or we need to read about it and understand the significance because that’s how you learn and make sure that we don’t make the same mistakes in the future, but does not glorify it, does not celebrated it,” he continued.
Watch video of Castro’s remarks below:
WATCH: 2020 presidential candidate Julián Castro tells CBSN he's "glad to see" Nike pulled Betsy Ross flag sneakers from retailers. https://t.co/5oj3ocuBWq pic.twitter.com/ZoovI2ZpgZ
— CBS News (@CBSNews) July 4, 2019
Twitter users erupted after hearing of Castro’s comparison:
What is he even talking about? It’s representative of the 13 states the birth of a new nation after the revolutionary war 😡
— Michele (@micheleros) July 3, 2019
The confederate flag is a bit more understandable.. but the betsy Ross flag? It’s literally just an earlier version of the American flag! Next they’re going to try to get July 4th removed as a holiday.. it’s about the founding of our country, just like that flag.
— Blake L. (@blakel2017) July 3, 2019
Sad. The Betsy Ross flag has nothing to do with slavery. It was a Revolutionary flag that many colonists fought under. Many Northern colonists were free black men who shared America's dream of Independence. They were true American patriots. We should honor men like Edward Hector. pic.twitter.com/B3Z7mRlCFL
— Sonny Farmer (@SonnyFarmer) July 3, 2019
Again…it was prominently displayed at Obama’s 2nd inauguration. Please for the love, do something constructive! pic.twitter.com/GXn8kNzvtz
— Theresa Williams (@Momt14Theresa) July 4, 2019
Castro’s claim is ridiculous. Until news of Nike’s decision broke, pretty much no one outside of the concern troll left and the ten white supremacists who have “co-opted” the Betsy Ross flag were aware that it had been appropriated covertly for racist purposes.
Red State‘s Bonchie made an excellent point in this regard last night in his post on another historically ignorant leftist who made an obscenely off-base comparison:
Until five minutes ago, absolutely no one was even aware that they should be offended by the Betsy Ross flag. Like all things in politics these days though, it quickly became dogma on the left that the original American flag is a violent symbol of racist oppression. Some of us tried to warn others that it was going to come to this but we were called crazy. I can remember during the original days of the Kaepernick kneeling ordeal when we were assured his protests had nothing to do with the flag itself. Life comes at you fast.
This is the thing about the left that I’m sure most readers understand but which I will nevertheless reiterate: You give them an inch, they will take a mile – and then some.
Though there was an intense debate about Confederate monuments and whether or not they should be removed, the powers that be in various cities and states decided it was in the best interests of their communities to remove them. One of the main arguments used in opposition to these moves is that the left wouldn’t just stop at Confederate monuments.
It was believed that once they got their way on those monuments, the next move would be to erase all public references to our founding fathers and other important historical figures. That is now happening.
Now the movement is extending to historical flags that have nothing whatsoever to do with racism. The left also did this with the Gadsden flag when the Tea Party used it as a symbol. All of a sudden it was a code for racism. In reality, it wasn’t, but when the left has decided they don’t like something you can rest assured they will do whatever they can to either demagogue it out of existence or shame people into being quiet about it.
What’s next on the chopping block? Our current American flag?
Tired of Democratic candidates acting as though they have to fall in line on every single bullshit outrage du jour. It's perfectly OK to say no to taking offense to some things. Betsy Ross was a quaker. The quakers were the primary abolitionists of her time.
— Paul LaPierre (@PaulLaPierreULL) July 4, 2019
Bingo.
People are absolutely fed up with this kind of nonsense, and if Democrats can’t find anyone on their side to stand up to it then they are practically begging for another 4 years of President Trump.
Your call, lefists.
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—Based in North Carolina, Sister Toldjah is a former liberal and a 15+ year veteran of blogging with an emphasis on media bias, social issues, and the culture wars. Read her Red State archives here. Connect with her on Twitter.–
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