There are few participation trophies more iconic than the Confederate flag. When flag bearers give a justification, they usually say that the flag represents pride in one’s history. Not treason for some reason, but history. Little hard to believe considering that the Confederacy was only around for about 4 years. Tiktok has been around for 8 years now but I’m sure nobody gets a deep feeling of heritage when they look at that logo. If it was for history’s sake, you’d be better off hanging a Lynyrd Skynyrd t-shirt in your office; that southern band has had about 45 more years of success than Robert Lee and his group of losers could muster, with better music to boot.
Usually it is well within your prerogative to fly whatever flags you wish, but things get a little more complicated when you’re a judge. And while Alito (and his wife’s) flag waving are the most iconic examples of judges wearing their politics on their flag poles, they are far from the only ones. The New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct decided that a judge should be removed from office, in part due to his decision to display the Confederate flag in his chambers. ABA Journal has coverage:
[Judge Thomas F. Rathbun] displayed the statue featuring the Confederate flag on his desk in chambers for a period of 18 years, according to the Aug. 5 commission determination made public on Monday. His desk could be seen from the courtroom on the frequent occasions that he left his door open.
Rathbun “undermined the integrity of the judiciary and created at least the appearance of racial bias” by displaying the statue, the commission said.
The Confederate Flag is recognized by the ADL as a White Supremacist symbol. If you aren’t partial to the ADL, here’s video footage of a bunch of White Supremacists bearing the Confederate flag among other “symbols of heritage”:
Trump said yesterday at a rally
he wanted to “rename military bases for Confederate soldiers”. That’s why the Nazis went to Charlottesville! My great grandfather fought in the Civil War against that flag and my uncle Dude was shot down by Nazis in 1942. I have not yet begun to… pic.twitter.com/096ocGdgL1— Sandi Bachom 📹 (@sandibachom) July 21, 2024
The real question is why the hell did it take 18 years for someone to do something? Was no one around back in 2021 when National Geographic ran a piece on how the flag “became a symbol of racism“? Or back in 2015 when Vox ran a piece laying out the Confederate flag’s history as a White Supremacy symbol?
Judge Rathburn wasn’t removed solely for his poor choice of workplace decor — he also posted and shared some content unbecoming of a judge on Facebook — but it is nice to finally see some consequences for judges that think hate symbols are acceptable chambers decor.
Judge Who Displayed Confederate-Flag Statue Should Be Removed, Judicial Conduct Commission Says [ABA Journal]
Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord™ in the Facebook group Law School Memes for Edgy T14s. He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boatbuilder who cannot swim, a published author on critical race theory, philosophy, and humor, and has a love for cycling that occasionally annoys his peers. You can reach him by email at [email protected] and by tweet at @WritesForRent.
