Esper issues de facto ban on Confederate flags at U.S. military bases

Defense Secretary Mark Esper released a memo Friday that in effect bans the public display of the Confederate flag. None of those flags appear on an itemized list of flags approved for display at military headquarters and in barracks rooms. Esper’s decision is the latest change to come in response to the nationwide protests that followed the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police and the resulting public discussion about racism and its…