Mayor Joe McComb walked the plank and jumped in the bay May 3, 2018. The long-time tradition marks the beginning of Buc Days carnival and parade in Corpus Christi. Natalia Contreras/Caller-Times


A float in Saturday's Buc Days Illuminated Night Parade displayed the Confederate flag. It is the second year that the Sons of Confederate Veterans has had a float in the parade.


That's the first question that occurs to many people when attention is called to the display of a Confederate symbol. But the question itself is an insult to the descendants of slaves.

People who support the display of the Confederate flag say its a symbol of history and their heritage. People who oppose it say it's a symbol of the treasonous attempt to perpetuate the enslavement of black people, in the war that killed more Americans than any other.

Both are correct.


The presence of that symbol in arguably Corpus Christi's defining community event alarmed the Rev. Adam Carrington, pastor of Brooks A.M.E. Worship Center, when he saw it on television Saturday night. He is not alone in his concern, but as a black pastor of a historically black congregation, he is a likely and willing spokesman whose Facebook page became a place for people to vent. Carrington plans to raise the issue during public comment at next week's City Council meeting and perhaps at the Nueces County Commissioners Court.

So, why did the Buc Commission allow the float? Why not just tell the Sons of Confederate Veterans thanks but no thanks? Because, according to the commission, saying no to any group, including this one, would be discriminatory.


"As a non-profit organization," according to the commission's statement Monday, "the Buccaneer Commission does not and shall not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), political views, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, in any of its activities or operations."

The commission also provided this information from the group's application:

"The SCV is also committed to educating the public about the history of the 1861-1865 period and preserving Confederate monuments, graves, and artifacts. The SCV is not affiliated with any other organization and specifically rejects anyone who advocates the overthrow of the U.S. Government or is knowingly a member of any known hate group.

"Why do you participate in the parade?: It is an ongoing tradition for us. We have had negative insults hurled at us in the past; however, the people of Corpus Christi are always warm and open to welcoming to us.

"What is something that you want South Texas to know about your group or organization?: We are made up of Tejanos, Anglos, African Americans and we welcome anyone who has a Confederate ancestor who served in the War Between the States. We are not affiliated or condone any racism or hate groups. We simply want to remember the citizen soldiers who were our ancestors during the war."

Contrast that message with these statements from the national group's website:


And this: "The preservation of liberty and freedom was the motivating factor in the South’s decision to fight the Second American Revolution."

How are the descendants of slaves to interpret those?

"Now you want to fight for the people who fought for the keeping of slaves?" Carrington asked. "Their purpose isn't very good."


Mayor Joe McComb, who rode in the parade — it's a tradition for mayors — said he wasn't aware of the float. He also noted that the city doesn't determine who rides in the parade. But he didn't fault the commission for allowing the float.

"If you're going to wipe out one part of our history you might as well wipe it all out," McComb said. "It's our history, like it or not."

McComb's reaction reflects what many people think. Carrington's response to that widely held, widely heard position also is widely held: 

"It's a part of our history, yeah, but it should be in a library somewhere."

This is a story that many people will say isn't a story. Many will see the telling of it as divisive. Ironically, many of the people who wish this story weren't being told, are the same folks who don't see a problem with flying the Confederate flag during a parade and think that any attempt to block it is tantamount to preventing that story from being told.

Many others will see this story as a story that needed to be told, should have been told sooner, and wasn't told in nearly enough detail.

Like it or not, there will be more to this story.

More: Buc Days Illuminated Night Parade celebrates 82 years


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