“Upon seeing the confederate flag on a bumper sticker that reads ‘This Is My Pride Flag,’ I ask,” Poem, Kristen Rapp.

what are you proud of?

Southern heritage, they say, but what they mean is white rage that hammers d own to clutch some self-proclaimed right to stand on the necks of souls judged unworthy of pride. Hate

is not heritage. Hate is venom not to be confused with apple butter or sweet tea on a wrap-around porch or yes ma’ams draped in seersucker suits. Once, when I was new to the South and alone,

a neighbor took me in to cook for me and tell me about her life. The fibromyalgia, her new garden, her gay son, how she didn’t understand it at first. But I think I was mostly just scared.

She pointed to a picture on her fridge of a man draped in the rainbow flag that saved his life. He just looks so happy now, you know?

So proud.

Kristen Rapp is a poet and sociologist. She is an associate professor of Sociology and Public Health at Roanoke College, where she studies and teaches on the topic of social inequalities in health. Her recent research examines the relationship between U.S. state policy contexts and disparities in healthcare access by gender and race. Her poetry explores themes of motherhood, queer identity, and politics. Kristen lives in Roanoke, Virginia with her wife and son.