The Pensacola branch of the NAACP has sent a letter to the Escambia Board of County Commissioners titled: “Economic Development Committee Flag Response and Proposed Compromise Solution.”
While citing how divisive the Confederate flag is in the community, it appears that George Hawthorne, chairman of the NAACP Economic Development Committee, is agreeing to bringing back the City of Five Flags display to the Pensacola Bay Center if the BCC becomes a partner in its “Bank On Escambia†initiative and gives the NAACP $25,000.
In December 2014, the BCC voted to remove the five flags – Spanish, British, French, Confederate and United States – from the center and replace the display with the U.S. flag. Only Commissioner Wilson Robertson voted against the motion.
Commissioner Grover Robinson has brought the issue back up for a vote today. He wants the County to honor the same five flags approved by the Pensacola City Council and place them at the Pensacola Bay Center. The resolution also leaves open the option to place the flags at other county buildings.
According to Hawthorne, the “Bank On Escambia†initiative provides a “platform for collaboration “ designed to help low- income and underserved communities of all races gain access to mainstream financial institutions and bank accounts to benefit the community by making citizens more financially stable and educated. An overview of this initiative is attached.
The local NAACP is requesting the $25,000 for “outreach, workshops, advertising, financial training and technical assistance required under the implementation of this initiative that demonstrates the ‘New South’s’ commitment to building community partnerships between all races and all organizations.”
Inweekly reached Commissioner Lumon May this morning. “I can support the ‘Bank On Escambia’ initiative, but that it should be separated from the vote on the Confederate flag,” said May. “It appears that the NAACP leaders have struck a deal tying their funding to the flag display. If it turns out to be true, that really saddens me.”
Read NAACP Letter and Pensacola NAACP Economic Development Initiative