Grand Ole Opry country music club in Glasgow upholds Confederate flag ban after member vote

A country music club in Glasgow has upheld a ban over the use of the American Confederate flag following a narrow committee vote.

Members of the Grand Ole Opry, on Glasgow’s Govan Road, voted by 50 to 48 on Monday night to maintain a ban previously agreed by club officials.

The original decision to remove the controversial flag, which was adopted by slave-owning American states in the Civil War era, was made by “a minority of members” on October 9 – a move which resulted in the club’s president resigning.

Following the flag’s ban, an emergency meeting was organised on Monday after there became a split between members over the decision.

However, on Tuesday it was revealed that the ban was upheld following a secret ballot during the meeting.

A member who took part in the vote, but wishes to remain anonymous, told STV News that the club “can hold its head high and be a welcoming venue for all the community” after the banning of the flag was upheld.

They said: “I voted to keep the ban in place.

“It can only be a good thing, considering the Confederate flag is now known throughout the world as a symbol of racism.

“The Opry can hold its head high and be a welcoming venue for all the community, not a select few.

“Common sense won in the end.”

Flag controversy

The Confederate flag is widely seen as a racist symbol as it celebrates the forces of the Confederacy, who fought to preserve slavery in the American Civil War.

The flag was famously brandished by Donald Trump supporter Kevin Seefried, while he stormed the US capitol building in 2021.

The symbol was previously used at the Grand Ole Opry flag-folding ceremony, called the American trilogy, which is done at the end of each club night.

The venue’s website states that this is to commemorate Americans who died throughout the Civil War of 1861-65.

It states: “We dedicate the American Trilogy as a salute in memory of all those men and women lost from both sides.”

The National Theatre of Scotland previously cancelled a play at the venue over the flag, with bosses saying they could not be associated with any emblem of racial discrimination.