Should Confederate Flags Be Sold At Lorain County Fair?

LORAIN, OH — Three billboards in Lorain County have been stirring controversy recently. Each sign opposes the sale of Confederate flags at next week's county fair, prompting local debate about what's appropriate at a county fair.

Those billboards are being put up by the Fair-minded Coalition of Lorain County, which has opposed the sale of the flags for at least three years. The group has also posted a petition to try and prohibit the sale of the flags at the Lorain County Fair.

“We hope (the billboards) bring awareness to this issue,” Executive Director of the Elyria and Lorain YWCAsJeanine Donaldson told the Chronicle-Telegram. “Once the Ohio State Fair banned the sale of the flags in 2015, we thought other counties would do likewise. It seemed like a no-brainer.”

As for the petition, by Monday morning, it had gathered a little more than 450 signatures after being posted less than 24 hours earlier.

"The sale of confederate merchandise, including the flag, has already been banned by State Fairs in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois, and New York, in addition to major retailers such as Google, Walmart, eBay, Sears, Target, Etsy, and Amazon. We insist that the Lorain County Fair respect the dignity of Lorain County residents of all backgrounds and prohibit the sale of this shameful symbol of our nation's past," the group wrote on change.org.

Lorain County Fair president Ron Pickworth seems unmoved by the Coalition's efforts. He said he considers this an issue of freedom of speech and that each fair should have the right to determine if Confederate flag sales should continue.

“I am disappointed that this is continuing, and we are not changing our standard,” Pickworth said. “The vendor will be returning with the flag this year.”

Pickworth's defense of the flag sales mimics what his predecessor, Kim Meyers said in 2016. “You mention hatred, slavery and things like that. A lot of the people, it's their heritage and part of the south,” Meyers told Fox 8 that year.

The Coalition is expected to announce what it will do during the coming Lorain County Fair during a news conference on Wednesday, the Chronicle-Telegram wrote.

The Lorain County Fair runs from August 20 through August 26.

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Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images