Austin Mayor won't march in Veterans Day Parade because of Confederate flags

Austin Mayor Steve Adler says he’s spending the weekend honoring Veterans for Veterans Day.

He’s volunteering at the Central Texas Food Bank. “25% of the people that get meals at the food bank are veterans so that’s a really good way to honor vets,” Adler said.

Adler is also writing thank you notes to veterans and going to the Red White and Blues concert at Stubbs Sunday night. But one thing he’s not doing...is participating in the annual Veterans Day Parade downtown.

“I made the choice not to march in the parade because there will be a group in the parade that will be carrying a Confederate flag,” he said.

Mayor Adler says it’s something that’s bothered him the past 2 years he’s participated.

He says it’s a personal decision. “I think the Confederate flag is the kind of thing we should all know about and not forget but we should be seeing those in classrooms and museums and not cheering them in parades,” Adler said.

Parade committee chairman Jim Darwin wrote to FOX 7 saying in part:

“The Committee understands that some in our community consider the Confederate battle flag as a negative symbol and therefore voted unanimously to ban the flag from the parade. The Committee's focus is to honor our veterans by including as many veterans as possible and create a safe environment for the parade. We also understand that Mayor Adler met with the veteran Confederate groups and was of the belief that they had worked out a compromise for both of them to participate in the parade,” Darwin said.

The Mayor’s office says the parade committee did know he had decided not to participate.

Adler’s office says he discussed the issue with the committee as well as the Confederate groups and the "Confederate States Flag" will still be flown. The mayor says banning the battle flag is a step in the right direction but it does not go far enough.

"Confederate Veterans have never been made United States Veterans and they’re not...they fought against the United States. I think Veterans Day is a day when we should be honoring United States Veterans and I am all over that," Adler said.

We did reach out to the Sons of Confederate Veterans and have not heard back.