Minutes 05-15-2018 - Laserfiche WebLink

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14 roundabout way, as the County cannot regulate flag content. He said in the past flags have been exempt from County legislation governing signs on private property, and it is not difficult to see why this has been the case. He said flying flags has been a tradition throughout the nation’s history, and is a form of expression protected by the first amendment’s protection of free speech. He said even burning the national flag on public property is protected, so surely flying one on private property should be uncontroversial. He said the proposed amendment is not a blunt instrument, but rather is the wrong instrument, and likely to do as much harm as good. Billy Holloway said he lives across the road where the large flag flies now. He said the residents live on private property, and went through the appropriate channels to site this flag, and now the Board is trying to change the rules in order to suit other people who live nowhere near this flag. He said people do not have to travel this way if this flag offends them. He said the County has purchased property adjacent to his, and has made a commitment to working with him through the development of the property. He said he is concerned that he is unable to trust the County at its word, because if it can up and change the rules any time it pleases, the County may do the same to him. He said everyone has the right to do as one pleases on one’s own land, but the County appears to be judging people for their choices. Ken Rothrock said he has practiced law for over 37 years in Orange County, and he said the constitution sets out specifically what governments can do. He said if the government moves to infringe on any right, one should ask why. He said the abstract refers to the need for uniformity of size and number of flags on one’s property. He said he wonders why it is important to ensure uniformity, when Orange County is such a diverse community. He said it makes no sense for the County to seek such uniformity. He said Michael Harvey reported that staff chose for only three flags to be permitted because staff did not have enough time to think any further through the issue. He said if staff has not had enough time to think, then the process should pause. He said this proposed amendment seems to violate the equal protection clause a little bit in how it treats citizens. He said if one has a big home, one can enjoy a much bigger flag, but one with a small home is not afforded the same opportunity. He said this is allowing wealth to determine one’s expression. He asked if the Board would seriously consider why it wants to amend the UDO. Waddy Davis said he is from Chapel Hill, and is a combat veteran of Vietnam. He said if one can burn a flag if a public place, then one should be able to fly a flag of one’s choice and size. He said if the BOCC legislates the size of the flag on the personal property, he wonders what it will legislate next. He thanked the BOCC for its service, and urged the Board not to adopt this amendment. Angelique Lawyer said she is a retired Army nurse, and had a visceral reaction when she learned of this agenda topic. She said she has observed multiple large confederate flags in the County, and the Confederate flag means something different to an African American than to a white person. She said whites largely see it as a symbol of southern heritage, while African Americans largely see it as a hateful racial affront. She is in favor of the proposed amendment. William Carrington said he is a native of North Carolina, and is a Civil W ar historian, an expert on flags, and an author. He said there is as much misunderstanding and confusion out there, as there is accurate information. He said the constitution is often misquoted, all the way up to the U. S. Senate. He said he has not see the flag on Highway 70, but said it is the Army of Northern Virginia pattern battle flag, which is not the flag used by the Ku Klux Klan. He said this flag was a piece of military hardware, which came about after some duration of the civil war, when a flag was needed that did not look like the flag of the United States. He said he is offering his expertise to anyone that is interested in discussing some real history on flags. He said he is not taking a side, and he understands both sides of the issue. He said he believes that Confederate memorabilia belongs in museums.