BJ's Employee files Confederate Flag Lawsuit

hey brother, i've run into the same problem. an "unknown" person complained to my foreman, that my sticker on my welding hood that reads "if this flag offends you, then you need a history lesson" "offends" him. my foreman inturn told me to take it off or i'm fired. i told him to get my union steward. the steward said the same thing. i said"NO", "I WILL NOT REMOVE IT." So now we wait and see what they do friday. any advice on what i CAN do if they fire me?

I can't see how he would win or get anything from BJ's. They had a right to ask him to move the flag or park the car off the companies property. They have customers that react much like some people did here in this thread. And they are a business. They have certain rights as an employer.

I think he is doing both a statement and getting some bucks from Bj not sure how successful he will be on the bucks. I agree though that it really doesn not matter what the message is, if they told him he is not allowed in employee lot then he has to get his sorry ass truck out of there

he clearly wants a suit based on the article. will he win his case, not so sure.

I hope he wins his lawsuit.

I have lived in the south, and seen this flag sold at state fairs and festivals, and worn proudly on tee-shirts by plenty of white people. I have lived in the north, where a festival booth would be shut down immediately for selling confederate flag merchandise.

To those who simply see this as a free speech issue: The flag may represent something totally innocuous to you, but it is entirely ignorant and self centered to pretend that you're unaware that it represents a symbol of hatred to the black people standing next to you. They are not amused, nor do they see it as a symbol of rebellion or southern pride. They see it as a symbol of hatred. Even if you do not see it that way, you must be lucid enough to notice what that symbol represents to those around you.

Yes, of course you have the right to fly the confederate flag, the same way you have the right to hang a swastika air freshener on your rearview mirror, but don't be shocked when people make assumptions about you for doing so. Whether you're a racist or not, by simply displaying that symbol, you're letting people know that you're fine with being seen as a racist.

The swastika was a symbol for Jainism before Hitler co-opted it, but you can bet that any modern day Jainists in the western world do not walk around covered in swastikas, because THEY KNOW HOW IT WILL BE INTERPRETED, and they RESPECT their neighbors and associates enough to not intentionally offend them.

We do not exist in a vacuum, people. We are on this earth with others, and if you display a symbol that is widely recognized as offensive, people will assume it is your intention to offend. The confederate flag is a polarizing symbol, and the attitude that defends that symbol is a huge part of what made me move back up north.

And as far as BJ's goes, they are allowed to tell their employees to represent themselves in a certain way. If this guy broke company code, or did something that they felt would drive business away from the store, then BJ's had every right in the world to react the way they did.

The main reason why slavery is connected to this flag is because of the emancipation proclamation.

"I would save the Union. I would save it the shortest way under the Constitution. The sooner the national authority can be restored; the nearer the Union will be "the Union as it was." ... My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery. If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that."
-abraham lincoln in a letter to Hoarace greeley

Maybe Im biased, I had a friend who was murdered because his friend was wearing a shirt with this flag on it, and I hate the ignorance that surrounds its interpretation.......The war was not about slavery, and neither is that flag........

He would rather walk in the rain to/from work then just take the flag down or cover it when he is in the parking lot.

Swiming in the Shallow end of the gene pool.

My 1 cent, I think BJ's has a right to ask him to remove the flag if it's on their property.

Dudebro says "It's about heritage; it's about pride,"

I've never understood this! The heritage of being stubborn slave owners who would rather break the country apart than compromise? The pride of LOSING the war? That's what you want to represent?

Thing that really gets me is this "guy" has a 20+ year old home camo painted pos pickup, but can afford an attorney.

And he's hoping they fire him to help with a lawsuit.

Civil rights is such a sore topic after Bush for 8 years and a supreme court that has raped Americans of simple civil rights. It looks at first blush that the company has a right to ask him to remove the car or content as long as he is on their property. Since he now parks 1/2 mile away he should be ok. (?)

it does offend. but in the south it is generational.

I don't care if he had his mother sitting on the antenna. Its not the message that people will take from it, read the posts here and see how many opinions we already have. This has nothing to do with his employment, they do not have a right to control what he has on/in/outside his car no matter what. This has been tested over and over and over. Employers tried to fire people for smoking even though they stood outside on their breaks in rain and snow 50 ft from the building and that didn't work either. Once you allow an employer to follow you outside the work place and scrutinize your choices it's beyond employment law, it's called harassment.

I could understand if it was something like a swastika

People should be able to have whatever kind of message on their car, that they want. A business should not tell people how to live. I wouldn't care if I guy have in big letters on his car like "BEANER CRUSHER!" or "Illegal Immigrant Hunting License" I just laugh and go about my day. It's their property, they do with it what they want. I don't care if a guy came in buying tomatoes in a Nazi outfit, it would not bother me. Everyone needs to get a grip, this isn't high school anymore where you can whine until you get something done. That man has rights and clearly they were violated.

Oh and for the people saying that the flag was for "hate" the issue was not with slavery it was really about state rights. They had agreed to free the slaves after the war. The government could have just bought the slaves from the slave owners and called it a day. Instead they choose a long and bloody war (costing many millions more dollars and thousands of lives). Just a making a statement to what will happen if the states try to appose federal rulings.

this is where managing skill comes in handy.. you dont tell them your firing them because they have a flag but because they have been late to work 5 days in a row.. or something obscure wand legit...

this could have been ignored.. not a lot of people would have thrown a fit about it...

ITs obviously his right to free speech.. he's case is sure to win.. even if the flag symbolizes hate for some people...

That flag is a terrible sign of times not that far in the past. He should use a jolly roger flag or something else. People who use this flag are at the least, ignorant of what it stands for and are just flaunting their ignorance when they use it.

Well, it was parked in the Employee parking lot, but regardless of that, I think he is still protected under the Freedom of Speech act. What would they if you had a bumper sticker that had a negative message? Or say a small Nazi flag draped over the rear view mirror? I get nervous when they start messing with free speech. We lost enough to W Bush in the last couple of years and we need to make sure to protect what little is left.

BJs has not violated anyone's freedom of speech. We must not forget that the man responsible for all of this controversy is a BJs employee. Thus he is subject to the discretion of his employer. Many BJs patrons may find the history and symbolism of the Confederate flag offensive. Therefore, the company is forced to create some sort of standard by which all employees must adhere to ensure the quality of the consumer's experience.
Let's take South Carolina as an example. It was the last state in the Union to remove the Confederate flag from it's state house, and it continues to fly the "stars and bars" in front of the building to this day. I believe SC took the right approach to this issue, and one BJs attorneys might want to cite.
Those interested in flying the Confederate flag should do so in memorial. That's what SC has done. Placed the flag directly behind the Confederate soldiers memorial in front of the state house. This may entail flying the flag on your personal property, or observing similar memorials. However, there is no place for such symbols or personal statements (the object of many whom fly the Confederate flag) at one's place of employment. This man needs to realize that the company's liable here, and he should respect the view and policies of his employer.

I think the confederate flag stands for a lot of things, both good and bad. But it doesn't matter, because free speech is protected no matter what it symbolizes. I personally think the guy should have been allowed to keep his flag up, but i understand how someone who sees that thing parked outside a BJ's might think it reflects the type of company BJ's is or their customer base.

And after the flag, what's next? If an employer doesn't agree with a certain lapel pin you wear? your color of your hair? (Say blue if you are into that) This is more about your rights as a citizen then it is about the flag. I realize that employers have certain rights to direct employees but when it comes to free speech and your right to express yourself by word or action there should be a very restricted limit on what employers can do.

ok, we may all agree with what the flag stands for ..(?) but, the bigger question raised is the Freedom of Speech and if BJ's violated that. Does this mean if I hang a certain flag outside my house the rest of the community can file petitions with the town to make me take it down?

You guys can rationalize it all you want. Call it rebellion, and justice, blah blah blah.

The Confederacy still stands as a symbol of the last bastion of slavery in the modern world.

And people fly that flag because the South has never been able to lift itself out of the depressed economy that resulted in slavery being taken away.

People feel nostalgic for the "good old days." They're not celebrating liberty.

A flag?

I have a confederate flag in my room. More of a symbol towards rebellion and the fight against tyranny, not because I'm racist.

"While the policy does not identify any specific type of expression, it generally prohibits expression that is rude, abusive, hostile or intimidating."
Displaying a flag falls under which one of these policies? Rude? Abusive? Hostile or intimidating?
Civil Liberty Union must be loving this!