Confederate flag
in Milford

What would Dr. King say?

By KRISTA GROMALSKI

MILFORD — With the commemoration of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day on Monday, January 15, Milford faces an issue not unlike those addressed by Dr. King on his mission toward realizing racial harmony.

The January 9 agenda of the newly formed Tri-State Unity Coalition included discussion of a Confederate flag displayed at Mr. & Ms. Cigar Tobacconists, at 108 Route 6 in Milford. The coalition learned of the flag through a correspondence from an unnamed individual who frequents the town, according to Rosanne La Russo Kolberg, chairperson of the coalition.

Kolberg said after receiving the complaint, coalition treasurer Perry Gower attempted to discuss the issue with the proprietors of Mr. & Ms. Cigar on the premises of the store. “I told him to get out,” said owner Ed Hauser, who has owned four stores in New Jersey and Pennsylvania since 1972 and has flown a confederate flag at each location.

“I’ve only had two people in 27 years complain,” said Hauser, who also sells various flags at his store in Milford. One of those complaints came from Gower on behalf of the coalition.

The Confederate flag, according to Hauser, is not a racial symbol. He said he was offended by someone telling him what to do. “I’m not Hitler,” he said. “A lot of good people died on both sides [of the Civil War.]” Flying the flag, he said, is “a privilege of living in America.”

La Russo said the symbol is related to states’ rights and southern culture, which is “some serious racial stuff.”

“There needs to be some discussion of awareness,” she said. “The difference between the sixties and now is that people were talking because things were in your face—people had to talk about it.”

La Russo also said the population in Milford is becoming more diverse with the population influx from the city, but there has been no dialog related to this change.

If someone doesn’t like his Confederate flag, Hauser said they should “look the other way and go down the road.”