For the past two weeks, the debate over whether Mississippi should remove the Confederate flag from the state flag has focused primarily on two opposing views of what the Confederate flag represents — heritage or hate.
But there is another perspective from which to view the issue that casts the matter in a different light that merits consideration: branding.
We hear a lot about branding these days. We have long recognized the power of a brand, of course. From icons such as Ford and GE and Coca-Cola to newer brands such as Apple and Google and eBay, brands are powerful players in the marketplace and great efforts are taken to ensure it is viewed favorably and recognized as important and valuable.
But branding is not relegated to businesses alone. People and places can have brands, too. Taylor Swift has a brand. So does Bill Cosby.
Mississippi has a brand, too. Our state is known for its long and continuing contribution in areas such as literature, music, arts and athletics. These achievements are more than just a point of pride for us, they create an image that reaps dividends, especially when it comes to tourism and recruiting new industry.
But in the wake of the horrific tragedy in Charleston, South Carolina, our brand has come under scrutiny for its association with the Confederate symbol attached to our flag.
While some of our state leaders — Mississippi Speaker of the House Phillip Gunn and U.S. Senators Thad Cochran and Roger Wicker – have called for a change in our flag, others have been reluctant to move.
South Carolina can’t part with the flag fast enough, which means Mississippi will be alone among the states to afford official recognition to the Confederate flag. As the scrutiny naturally shifts in our direction, the damage to our brand will only increase. The national conversation will not focus on the positive aspects of our brand, but on Mississippi’s lamentable record on race and the flag as a symbol of racial hatred and oppression.
A CNN poll released today shows 57 percent believe the Confederate flag symbolizes Southern pride, compared to 33 percent who say it is a symbol of racism.
Even so, no company that would be comforted by the knowledge that 1-in-3 people have such a negative association with its brand. It would be a call to action, which is exactly what we are seeing.
Retailers, for whom branding is enormously important, recognize the toxicity of the Confederate flag. No fewer than six major retailers — Walmart, Sears, Target, eBay, Amazon and Etsy — have announced that they will no longer carry merchandise with Confederate emblems. Even NASCAR, whose brand is all but synonymous with the South, has said it wants nothing to do with the Confederate flag.
At last week’s U.S. Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon, 49 state flags flew over the stadium. One did not.
On Monday, actress Aunjanue Ellis, whose film credits include Ray, The Help and The Book of Negroes, announced she has created a coalition to deliberately avoid film-making ventures in the state until the confederate flag emblem is removed from the state flag.
It is likely other boycotts will follow once the harsh light of scrutiny turns its focus entirely to Mississippi. Harder to measure is the negative effect on recruiting new companies to our state. State economic development and tourism officials have been non-committal on the subject. What we can safely assume, however, is the flag will not be a selling point.
For a governor who prides himself on economic development, Gov. Phil Bryant appears strangely indifferent, refusing to call a special session to take up the matter. That’s unfortunate. The longer we wait, the more intense the scrutiny and the greater the damage to the state’s image.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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