Chamber rallies support for new flag
Atlanta Business Chronicle
With only a 12-vote difference in the Georgia House's historic Jan. 24 vote to drop the Confederate battle emblem from the state flag, the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce now is rallying its 8,000 members to pressure state senators to approve a new flag next week.
In a mass email Thursday, Chamber President Sam Williams asked members to contact their local senators as well as email their support of Gov. Roy Barnes and Lt. Gov. Mark Taylor's stand against the current flag. State senators are scheduled to vote on the controversial issue Jan. 30.
"We think that Georgia and Atlanta need to continue the progressive response they have taken of dealing with tough issues," said Williams. "No. 2, we ought to learn a lesson from South Carolina. If we have a nasty confrontation with a national boycott, this is definitely going to hurt Georgia and Atlanta business."
Williams said the state stands to lose as much as $300 million in convention and tourism business. One high profile loss would be the NCAA Final Four Basketball Championships for men, scheduled to begin in Atlanta in March 2002. The women's tournament is scheduled for 2003.
"We have been put on notice by the NCAA," Williams said, adding that the conference is investigating the possibility of holding the games in New Orleans or Indianapolis.
By a vote of 94-82, the Georgia House of Representatives voted Jan. 24 to change the flag to a noncontroversial design featuring the state seal. After a stirring speech by Barnes, 75 Democrats and 19 Republicans in the House approved H.B. 16, which also protects U.S. and Confederate monuments, memorials and plaques.
Amid pressure brought on by an NAACP boycott of the state, the South Carolina legislature last year voted to take down the confederate battle flag from its Capital dome. Nearly 200 groups canceled conventions and events during the boycott.
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