Lynching Apology

The U.S. Senate is likely to approve a formal apology for its failure to approve anti-lynching legislation. I'm not sure if "too little, too late" or "talk is cheap" is the best description for this move. I'm sure Senators like Trent Lott and George Allen are deeply sincere in their apology. Lott, of course, set off a firestorm when he said the U.S. would have been better off if Strom Thurmond (who ran in opposition to federal civil rights enforcement, including anti-lynching legislation) had been elected in 1948. Allen, a co-sponsor of the resolution once hung a noose outside of his law office, displayed the Confederate flag in his home, and proclaimed Confederate History Month when he was governor of Virginia. Perhaps the Senators might want to back up their talk with a bill providing full funding for all civil rights enforcement agencies. And just for good measure, they could amend the U.S. Flag Code (Public Law 94 - 344) to say that the U.S. flag should never be displayed with any flag representative of the Confederate States of America.