Fansided

Mississippi football coaches want flag changed

By Matt Verderame

Nov 22, 2014; Starkville, MS, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs head coach Dan Mullen runs onto the field before the game between the Mississippi State Bulldogs and the Vanderbilt Commodores at Davis Wade Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Spruce Derden-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 22, 2014; Starkville, MS, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs head coach Dan Mullen runs onto the field before the game between the Mississippi State Bulldogs and the Vanderbilt Commodores at Davis Wade Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Spruce Derden-USA TODAY Sports /
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Dan Mullen and Hugh Freeze want to see change. Mullen, the head football coach of the Mississippi State Bulldogs and Freeze, holding the same position with the Ole Miss Rebels, joined together for a tremendous cause on Sunday, according to Nina Mandell of USA Today.

Mullen and Freeze co-signed a letter in the Clarion-Ledger newspaper, calling for the state of Mississippi to alter its flag because it features the confederate flag in one of the corners. The confederate flag was used as the symbol of the south during the Civil War, when the south was fighting to defend slavery. Somehow, the “Stars and Bars” are still featured prominently in that section of the country by both citizens and government.

This was the letter in the Clarion-Ledger:

"With other states removing their Confederate battle flags, Mississippi remains the last with the Confederate emblem flying over the statehouse.“It is simply not fair, or honorable, to ask black Mississippians to attend schools, compete in athletic events, work in the public sector, serve in the National Guard, and go about their normal lives with a state flag that glorifies a war fought to keep their ancestors enslaved,” the letter says. “It’s time for Mississippi to fly a flag for all its people.”"

This was also signed by Archie Manning, who was drafted by the New Orleans Saints first-overall out of Ole Miss in the 1970s. Manning has two pretty famous sons, Peyton and Eli, with the latter also playing for the Rebels. On the pop culture side of things, actor Morgan Freeman and signer Jimmy Buffet signed as well.

Good for all of these men. This is 2015, and it is insane that anybody should have to look at the symbol of their state and feel that it is racist against them. Mississippi has been the home of some incredibly ugly racial incidents, including the well-documented riot that took place in 1962 when James Meredith became the first black student allowed at the school.

It’s time for Mississippi to step up.

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