Hundreds gather at Stone Mountain for Confederate flag rally

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A Confederate flag rally at Stone Mountain in Georgia was surprisingly peaceful, with organizers of the pro-flag movement saying that they would not tolerate any violence or racism as they shunned a KKK member and tried to keep the peace when counter protesters showed up.

Pro-flag rally-goers came to celebrate their heritage, they said, and when a KKK member showed up in their midst, they began to chant, “Go away KKK.”

But tension did come to the protests when counter-protesters arrived, with one man shouting, “Look at your heritage,” as he stepped on the Confederate flag in front of them.

“Don’t waste your time with him,” said a flag supporter who was trying to keep everyone calm.

Although there were some tense moments, with profanity thrown around and accusations of racism thrown from the counter protesters to the pro-flag group, there was no violence.

“[They’re] trying to instigate the crowd – that could cause some problems,” John Bankhead of Stone Mountain Police said at the time. “I hope it settles down soon.”

“I was almost expecting to see a lot of white sheets but it hasn’t been like that at all,” Nick Stewart said. “They say it’s about heritage – not hate. It’s been peaceful.”