The Associated Press
Confederate flags are as easy to find at NASCAR races as cutoff jeans, cowboy hats and beer.
They fly over motor homes. They adorn clothing. They are regular fixtures, just like Ford and Chevrolet, and that is unlikely to change any time soon.
NASCAR probably would like to see them go away.
The sanctioning body for the motorsports series backed South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley鈥檚 call to remove the Confederate flag from the Statehouse grounds in the wake of the Charleston church massacre. NASCAR issued its statement Tuesday, the same day South Carolina lawmakers agreed to discuss removing the flag and one day after Haley said 鈥渢he time has come鈥� to take it down. And that is as far as NASCAR appears willing to go for now.
鈥淎s our industry works collectively to ensure that all fans are welcome at our races, NASCAR will continue our long-standing policy to disallow the use of the Confederate flag symbol in any official NASCAR capacity,鈥� NASCAR said. 鈥淲hile NASCAR recognizes that freedom of expression is an inherent right of all citizens, we will continue to strive for an inclusive environment at our events.鈥�
Nine people were slain last week at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, and Dylann Storm Roof, 21, is charged with murder. The white man appeared in photos holding Confederate flags and burning or desecrating U.S. flags, and purportedly wrote of fomenting racial violence.
Big retailers such as Walmart, Amazon, Sears, eBay and Etsy all said they would remove Confederate merchandise from their stores or websites and politicians across the South called for various steps to move away from the symbol that many associate with racism.
NASCAR has faced criticism over the years for various issues, often involving sponsors. A decade ago, there were questions when hard liquor companies emerged as potential sponsors for a sport built around fast cars and a series whose founding in 1948 gave ex-moonshiners a place to race.
Confederate flags have been flown by fans at NASCAR races through all of that. For NASCAR鈥檚 Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, a 21脷2-hour drive north of Charleston, a Confederate flag theme was part of poster merchandise from the 1950s into the late 1970s.
Tracks have long and detailed rules for fans, but none involving the content of flags. Although NASCAR has eliminated the use of Confederate flags in any official capacity, it could take things a step further and include language in sanctioning agreements that would ban them altogether at tracks.
But that would be difficult to enforce at tracks with hundreds of acres of infield space and sometimes more than 100,000 fans.
鈥淭here鈥檚 only so much that you can do with an issue like this if you鈥檙e NASCAR,鈥� said Brad Daugherty, a former NBA star and current co-owner of JTG Daugherty Racing.
鈥淏ut I will tell you, being an African-American man going to the racetrack and seeing the Confederate flag 鈥� and I鈥檓 a different egg or a different bird because I鈥檓 a Southern kid, I鈥檓 a mountain kid, I hunt and fish, I love racing,鈥� Daugherty said this week on Sirius XM radio. 鈥淏ut to walk into the racetrack and there鈥檚 only few that you walk into and see that Confederate flag 鈥� it does make my skin crawl. And even though I do my best to not acknowledge it or to pay any attention to it, it鈥檚 there and it bothers me because of what it represents.鈥�
In 2012, NASCAR and track officials cancelled plans to have pro golfer Bubba Watson drive the car from the television series The Dukes of Hazzard at Phoenix International Raceway, which is owned by ISC. Officials cited concerns about a negative reaction to an image of the Confederate flag on the roof of the 鈥淕eneral Lee.鈥�
Former Dukes actor and ex-Georgia congressman Ben Jones criticized that decision.
鈥淎s a cast member of The Dukes of Hazzard and the owner of several 鈥楪eneral Lees,鈥� I can attest that the car and our show reflect the very best of American values, and that Hazzard County was a place where racism was not tolerated,鈥� said Jones, who played the mechanic Cooter on the show. 鈥淭his action by NASCAR is a provocative and unnecessary overreaction to a problem that doesn鈥檛 exist. It is a disgraceful and gratuitous insult to a lot of very decent people.鈥�
