EUREKA SPRINGS - In a gentle southern breeze, the Confederate battle flag that will be seen by hundreds of thousands of travelers each day was raised this morning.
The Sons of Confederate Veterans unfurled the 50-by-30-foot flag next to the Interstate 75 bridge over U.S. 92 at 7 a.m. to commemorate the 200th birthday today of the Confederacy's only president, Jefferson Davis.
More than a dozen people attended, many wearing Dixie Outfitters T-shirts proclaiming, "It's a Southern Thing."
J.D. Spivey wore a black leather vest adorned with Confederate symbols. He's the founder of Hardcore Confederates, made up mostly of motorcycle riders. Spivey said this was a proud day.
For some, the flag is a symbol of racial hatred, and it was condemned this week by officials with the Florida NAACP after they learned from the Tribune it was going up.
Modern day Southern sympathizers don't see it that way.
"I tell them to read history. That's what I tell them," Spivey said. "I'm real proud of my ancestors and what they did. They stood up for what they believed in."
The flag, which cost $800 and was made in China, is the centerpiece of a Civil War memorial park that will be dedicated April 26, Confederate Memorial Day.
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