City sued for banning Confederate flag at Christmas parade

When the city of Natchitoches, Louisiana, banned the Confederate battle flag from its famous Christmas Festival parade in 2015, the Sons of Confederate Veterans fought back in court. The SCV’s Louisiana Division filed a federal lawsuit arguing that the ban violated its members’ First Amendment rights. City leaders said they wanted to keep a symbol that many view as divisive out of a family holiday event. The SCV said the city had singled out one group and one viewpoint for exclusion.

A Christmas Tradition

Natchitoches is the oldest permanent settlement in the Louisiana Purchase territory, founded by the French in 1714. Its Christmas Festival, held since the 1920s, is one of the largest holiday celebrations in the South, drawing visitors from across the country to see the lights along Cane River Lake. The local SCV camp had taken part in the parade for years before the ban.

The Free Speech Question

The lawsuit raised an important constitutional question. When a city opens a public parade to community groups, can it exclude one group because of the flag it carries? The Supreme Court has held that the government generally cannot discriminate against speech based on its viewpoint. The SCV argued that letting other groups march with their banners while banning theirs was exactly that kind of discrimination.

Not the Only Fight

Natchitoches was not alone. In the years after 2015, SCV camps in several Southern towns were told they could not carry the battle flag in Christmas and Veterans Day parades. In some cases, the groups chose to march with other historic Confederate flags instead. In others, they challenged the bans or held their own events. For SCV members, marching is a way to honor their ancestors in their own hometowns.

Read more in Why We Will Never Ban the Confederate Flag Here, and find flags for your next parade in our Confederate flag collection.

Source: The Daily Progress / AP: City sued for banning Confederate flag at Christmas parade

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