Fans of 1980s TV show The Dukes of Hazzard have launched a petition calling for TV bosses to bring back the show after reruns were pulled due to the ongoing controversy over its use of the Confederate flag.
The controversial symbol has been thrust into the spotlight following a shooting at a church in Charleston, South Carolina last month as the alleged perpetrator, Dylann Roof, was photographed posing with the flag prior to the atrocity.
In the TV show, the flag is prominently displayed on the roof of the lead characters' car, and one of its former stars Ben Jones, who played mechanic Cooter Davenport and is now a politician, has since defended the use of the flag.
US network TV Land has now taken the show off-air, and Warner Bros has stopped selling related merchandise, so fans have now launched a petition on Change.org demanding the series be brought back.
A message posted alongside the petition, which had garnered more than 20,000 signatures as WENN went to press, reads, "For well over 30 years, the Confederate flag has adorned the roof of the General Lee from The Dukes of Hazzard TV show. The Dukes of Hazzard was a show about values, morals and principles - not about racism and hate!!! Fans of the show who know what the show is all about and what the Confederate flag really stands for: southern pride and values - not racism or hate!!"
Roof, 21, has been charged with nine counts of murder stemming from the shooting.
WENN.com
source: newshub archive
