A dozen years ago, the State Representative from my adoptive hometown put forward a plan to fly a version of the Confederate flag at the State Capitol. He heard from many concerned citizens as to why we thought this was an execrable idea, emotional letters to the editor poured in to the Edmond Sun and the Daily Oklahoman from both supporters and opponents, and in the end that plan was shelved.
That was the last attempt to fly any Confederate flag at the Oklahoma Capitol, however, one had flown previously from 1966 until 1988, as part of a collection of 14 historically relevant national flags.
That collection now exists at the Oklahoma Historical Society—in accordance with state law—and includes two different Confederate flags, the original national flag of the Confederate States of America and a battle flag carried by Choctaw soldiers allied with the Confederacy.
While I am pleased that these symbolic relics have been moved down the street from the State Capitol, to be flown in a display which is more ostensibly historical than honorific, I find it curious that the tribes who remained loyal to the Union (such as the Lenni Lenape) are not represented in any way. Surely the Union-allied Native Americans had just as valid a claim on Indian Territory as their Confederate-allied contemporaries.
Your thoughts?
