Judge: Confederate emblem on flag ‘anti-American’

A federal judge said Tuesday that the Confederate emblem on the Mississippi flag is “anti-American” because it represents those who fought to leave the United States.

But U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves is not yet saying whether he will fully consider a lawsuit that seeks to eliminate the flag as a state symbol.

Reeves heard more than three hours of arguments about motions in the lawsuit that Carlos Moore, an African-American attorney from Grenada, Mississippi, filed against the state. Moore is asking Reeves to declare the flag an unconstitutional relic of slavery.

Moore argued that under the U.S. Supreme Court decision last summer that effectively legalized samesex marriage nationwide, a majority of justices found the Constitution protects a fundamental right of dignity. Moore argued the state flag violates his dignity and that of other AfricanAmericans.

“I’m nobody’s secondclass citizen, and I don’t appreciate being treated as such,” Moore said.

Reeves — who is also African-American — said he is considering two questions as he decides whether to give more thorough consideration to Moore’s lawsuit or to dismiss it.

One question is whether Moore has legal standing to sue the state, including whether Moore can prove he has been harmed because of the flag. The other question is whether flag design is an issue that can be decided by a court.