Cincinnati NAACP
Media Release
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CINCINNATI, OHIO - DECEMBER 20, 2010 - High ranking confederate
soldiers birthed the Klu Klux Klan (KKK).  The Confederate Flag and
the KKK are synonymous for symbols of hate and oppression.  The hate
and oppression is directed at African American people.  "There is only
one way to view a person who flies the Confederate Flag.  They are
people who want the south to return back to the 'good old days.'
These days were bad days for African Americans.  I would like to
remind American citizens who openly fly the Confederate Flag that they
lost the war," Christopher Smitherman, president of the Cincinnati
NAACP said.
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The construction industry leadership has communicated that they want
to raise the number of African Americans working on job sites.  "It is
hard to recruit African Americans to job sites with Confederate Flags
on t-shirts and trucks.  The city is using public money but allowing
workers to wear Confederate Flags.  Cincinnati is 50% African American
and this behavior must stop immediately.  The construction industry
should put together diversity training for workers that create a good
work environment," Smitherman says.