Readers of my blog who live in other parts of the United States have asked how I feel about the recent controversy over the Confederate flag and the senseless killings at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, SC. I can confidently say my friends and I, along with the majority of all Southerners, feel the same way the rest of the world does — outraged, shocked and saddened. But even though most of my friends agree it’s time the Confederate flag be packed away, we’ve also discussed how our original sentiments towards the flag were born of innocence.

I believe the Confederate flag is like the American flag in regards to meaning different things to different people. If you associate the flag with hatred, then that's what it means to you. But my generation, born during or just after the civil rights movement, didn’t realize the flag had only been placed on public property just before we were born in the 1960s. We naively grew up thinking the “Rebel flag,” as we always called it, stood for our home, a place with majestic Live Oak trees, Spanish moss, grits and sweet tea — so when we saw the Confederate flag, it made us happy and never conjured thoughts of hatred. Most of us didn’t own one or even think about it much at all, so it wasn’t a big deal.

A few decades ago, I heard of terrible people in the South — and actually, if truth be told, throughout the entire country — who were using the Confederate flag to represent something detestable. This hate-filled group seemed to be a small minority of what we call, "idiot rednecks" who twisted the meaning of the flag into something ugly, and since we didn’t really associate with these people, the majority of good Southerners ignored them. That was one of many mistakes.

Now it seems the evil connotations of this flag have surfaced and reigned supreme. Even though there’s nothing worse to a Southerner than having an outsider tell us what to do, we now see our misinformed, but innocent, “Gone With the Wind” view of the flag was misguided and it’s time to retire it to the halls of history.

But when all evidence of the Confederate flag has been erased, when it’s stripped from car bumpers, stores and homes, don't think things will change.

You see, it's not the flag that's the source of hatred. It's not guns that cause people to murder. There are plenty of horrible racists who own guns but would never think of killing anyone, so that's not where the problem lies.

In order to stop the nonsense of mass killings like the one in Charleston, we must address two things that have nothing to do with heritage, race, religion or sexual identity, two things lawmakers and the media seem to ignore.

First, we must examine the overuse of psychotropic medications being given to our children. I know there are legitimate instances where these medications have helped and even saved lives, but there is an overwhelming correlation between the overuse and misuse of the drugs and massive acts of violence.

Secondly, we need to refocus the intentions of our hearts and the purpose of our days. God has commanded us to love our neighbors and care for those in need. Many families need help with their children who are being left alone to sit in front of computers and TV sets all day watching a constant stream of violence and sex being broadcast into their homes. The gaming, music and movie industries don't care about God's instructions for us to build-up and encourage one another, they only focus on profits, (much like many pharmaceutical companies) no matter what the cost may be to society.

In the dreadful aftermath of this sad event, one point of beauty rose above the evil.

The people of this historic Southern city handled themselves with profound dignity and amazing grace. There was no talk of rioting, looting or attacking others. Regardless of individual beliefs or skin color, everyone in Charleston came together to console each other with love, friendship and supportive neighborliness . . . which is the only sentiment of the South we should ever want to wave.

Leslie Anne Harrison is a contributing writer for Gulf Coast Media and The Sumter Item. She also writes the blog, Fairhope Supply Co., which can be found at www.fairhopesupply.com.