海角大神

For those who find the decline in support for the Confederate battle flag to be proceeding too slowly, here's an alternative that is quick, direct, illegal, and likely to provoke rage.

The No Flagging Challenge dares people to destroy privately owned Confederate battle flags displayed on people's homes and vehicles.

According to the hashtag tracking site聽, the tag #NoFlaggingChallenge appeared聽Sunday, with most of its activity coming from Vine. About two-thirds of those posting videos are male. A similar tag #ConfederateTakedown is also popular on Twitter, but that tag is mainly geared towards legally removing the flags from public buildings.

Emotions are running high over this issue, as evidenced by the influx of complaints and news stories.

Over the weekend, Wallingford, Conn., police were dispatched, following reports of a flea market merchant selling Nazi and Confederate memorabilia, according to聽.

No arrests were made because no laws were broken. The items were being sold on private property by Military Specialties, Inc. which sells historical military objects, including those produced by the Third Reich and reproductions of those produced by the聽Confederacy.

The No Flag Challenge may have been sparked by the act of civil disobedience聽聽of Charlotte, N.C., who climbed a flagpole to remove the Confederate battle flag at a Confederate monument in front of the Statehouse in Columbia, S.C., last month and turned into a nationwide assault on flags flying on personal property.

But Heidi Beirich, who directs the Intelligence Project for The聽, is quick to make a distinction between Ms. Newsome鈥檚 actions and those seeking to destroy private property.

鈥淭his is not civil disobedience because you鈥檙e attacking a person and their stuff, and not the government,鈥� she says in an interview.

Ms. Beirich speculates that these new stunts may have been triggered by the pro-Confederate battle聽聽held over the weekend in Ocala, Fla., attracting thousands of supporters and flags.

鈥淭his angry thing in Ocala and this 'Tear down the flag' thing show just how awful our racial conversation is, that people are going to lengths that they鈥檙e going to be in your face, whether it鈥檚 taking the flag down or shoving it in a black neighborhood鈥檚 face,鈥� Ms. Beirich says.

鈥淥ur language around race, our situation around race has gotten so much worse," she says. "We鈥檝e stifled this for so long that these mean elements are just coming out... We鈥檙e still fighting the Civil War, which is ridiculous.鈥�

Those who fly the Confederate flags, she says, see the anti-flag movement as "an out-of-control cultural cleansing campaign. It鈥檚 not just about symbolic flags on state houses or court houses. This is about attacking private property, shutting down speech and so on.鈥�

But Beirich is adamantly against attacks on personal property.

鈥淭he flag on public property is one thing. It鈥檚 not helping the debate when it鈥檚 private property,鈥� says Beirich. 鈥淧ersonal anything is out of bounds. Just don鈥檛 do it. It鈥檚 completely inappropriate. Completely unacceptable. You may not like that flag, but you don鈥檛 have any right to tear it down from someone鈥檚 front yard 鈥� just like they can鈥檛 do it to you if they don鈥檛 like what you鈥檙e displaying. You wouldn鈥檛 want your rainbow flag or political sign torn down from your home.鈥�

Many on Twitter are expressing concerns that those vandalizing the flags on private property will suffer at the hands of angry property owners and the law.

Asked if she thinks those engaging in this new campaign could be in danger of being attacked, Beirich says, 鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 be surprised if violence broke out. Tempers are hot, to say the least.鈥�