Confederate Flags Can Be Seen All Over The World

As a Southerner who had at least three great grandfathers fight on the Confederate side of the Civil War, I have a problematic relationship with the old Confederate battle flag.

On one hand, yes, it reminds me of my family and the stories about my grandfathers. On the other hand, the Civil War was about the fight to keep slavery going. The way the flag has been adopted by hate groups makes it… icky.

Around the world, though, it looks like the flag has been adopted by people from Tokyo to Riga, Latvia –who might just consider the flag as a bit of cool, rebelous, American culture.

It’s more than that to me, but it might or might not mean anything to them.

This is a Confederate flag spotted in the Eifukucho neighborhood in Tokyo in 2012. I think this was a guitar repair shop.

This flag was spotted in a bar near the city center of Riga, Latvia in the summer of 2011.