Flaggers made their appearance on Lexington streets this morning, although their numbers were down considerably from what they have been in previous years.
The Flaggers have brought their Confederate flags to Lexington’s streets for years on the Friday before Lee-Jackson Day in protest of different actions by Lexington City Council and Washington and Lee University. This year, a large cutout of Stonewall Jackson’s statue at VMI was displayed, in reference to the removal of the statue from the parade ground this fall.
Although the state last year abolished the Lee-Jackson holiday, the Stonewall Brigade of the Sons of Confederate Veterans is once again celebrating the lives of Robert E. Lee and Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson with a series of events. Instead of in-person talks on Friday afternoon, though, the seminar is virtual. Saturday’s events are have also been revised, with the service at Stonewall Jackson Cemetery (now Oak Grove Cemetery) starting at 10 a.m. instead of 10:30, to allow for a keynote speaker then instead of a separate event in the afternoon. The parade is scheduled to start at 11:15.