Former USCB student supports removal of Confederate flag

A black college student known for hanging the Confederate flag from his University of South Carolina-Beaufort dorm room several years ago supports efforts to remove the symbol from the statehouse in Columbia.

The debate over the flag erupted last week following the massacre of nine people at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston. The shooting suspect is 21-year-old Dylann Roof, a white supremacist who has been pictured with the Confederate flag.

Byron Thomas, 23, said he will still hang his flag inside his apartment at the University of South Carolina, where he transferred from USCB in 2013. However, he said this week he sides with Gov. Nikki Haley and other politicians that the flag must be taken down to denounce those who stand behind it in racism or violence.

"I love South Carolina to the fullest and I'm willing to put my pride aside and put my 'guns' down so every South Carolinian can love South Carolina and call South Carolina home just like I do," Thomas said. "It's time to take it down and do what's right."

Thomas first garnered national attention in 2011, when he spoke out on CNN's citizen reporting website, iReport, about his desire to hang the Confederate flag from his window at USCB. Then 19, Thomas said he loved the flag and hung it out of respect for one of his ancestors, a black Confederate cook named Benjamin Thomas.

USCB tried to stop him from displaying the symbol in public space, claiming its Office of Housing had received several complaints from other students.

His struggle with USCB went viral and led to interviews with Dr. Phil, the Associated Press and CNN.

Thomas received similar attention this week, appearing on CNN International on Tuesday and writing a letter for the Washington Post's opinion website on Wednesday.

At USCB, he ultimately moved the flag into his dorm room, where he also displayed American and South Carolina flags. Today, it hangs in his apartment bedroom at USC, where he is studying public relations and political science.

Thomas said he was saddened that Roof is pictured holding the Confederate flag, though it has not dampened his respect for it.

In his interview on CNN on Tuesday night, Thomas said he recognizes he's among a minority of people who are not offended by the flag, but he refuses to give any symbol or words power over him.

Read more here: http://www.islandpacket.com/2015/06/24/3809084/former-uscb-student-supports-removal.html#storylink=cpy