Lynyrd Skynyrd Talk Confederate Flag Controversy
Lynyrd Skynyrd Court Controversy
In 2012, Southern rock kings Lynyrd Skynyrd were hit with controversy over the use of the Confederate Flag. Largely seen as a symbol of hatred and painful reminder of America’s past, the Confederate Flag has been used by Lynyrd Skynyrd since the 70’s to showcase their pride in their Southern roots and all that encompasses it: long, lazy summers, good manners, fervent faith, and a history of great music.
While the remaining members of Lynyrd Skynyrd renounced the use of the flag to distance themselves from the negative connotations, they later adopted it again and explained:
Guitarist Gary Rossington says, “We don’t wanna hurt anybody’s feelings. But we’re still so proud to be Southern, and to fly the Dixie flag, that’s fine,” before continuing with, “We didn’t mean anything by saying that we didn’t fly it because of Southern reasons, it was for other reasons. But we still do, now.”
The politics of such an emotionally charged, controversial item like the Confederate flag have no place within music; the last real human emotion that serves as the glue that bonds and unites people, music is an inherently good thing! We may not know them personally, but we’re positive that the guys in Lynyrd Skynyrd would definitely agree with us on that and urge us to get back to what’s really important: having a great time in the name of the music Ronnie created.
