Group takes credit for ‘DEFUND NASCAR’ banner
The Sons of Confederate Veterans says it was responsible for the “DEFUND NASCAR” Confederate banner that flew over the Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday.
The Columbia-based group hired a small airplane to pass over the track before the race, which was postponed Sunday and completed Monday. NASCAR banned Confederate flags from its events last week at the request of driver Bubba Wallace, who is Black.
“NASCAR'S banning the display of the Confederate battle flag by its fans is nothing less than trampling upon Southerners' First Amendment Right of free expression,” Sons of Confederate Veterans Commander in Chief Paul C. Gramling Jr. said. “This un-american act shall not go unchallenged. [On Sunday], members of the Sons of Confederate Veterans' Confederate Air Force displayed its disapproval of NASCAR'S trampling upon the First Amendment Rights of Southerners. During and before the start of the NASCAR race in Talladega, Alabama, race, our plane flew a banner announcing a drive to ‘defund NASCAR.'"
NASCAR did not acknowledge the plane or the banner. Executive vice president Steve O'donnell tweeted a picture Sunday of Black and White hands shaking: “You won't see a photo of a jackass flying a flag over the track here ... but you will see this ... Hope EVERYONE enjoys the race today.”
Signs prohibiting Confederate flags were posted outside entrances at Talladega Superspeedway before the GEICO 500. It was the second NASCAR race to allow spectators in wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Tickets were limited to 5,000 pre-selected fans.
Gramling said the flyover was paid for by the group's private donors.
The group might fly the banner over more NASCAR venues this season. Gramling said supporters loved the idea and reacted with excitement after watching it on television.
“We've had quite a bit of reaction,” Gramling said. “It's been very well received by everyone except NASCAR.
This is the hottest, quickest thing we've done to raise awareness of flag issues and to get a strong reaction in quite a while.”
The Sons of Confederate Veterans say on their website that they're “preserving the history and legacy of these heroes so that future generations can understand the motives that animated the Southern cause” in the Civil War.
The national organization's headquarters is located inside Elm Springs, a two-story brick Greek Revival house built in 1837, just south of Columbia at 740 Mooresville Pike.
The group has built a National Confederate Museum on the property. Its grand opening has been delayed by the coronavirus until fall.