Louisiana Senate candidate Gary Chambers burns Confederate flag in new viral ad

Louisiana U.S. Senate candidate Gary Chambers Jr., whose opening campaign video of him smoking a marijuana joint garnered a lot of attention, released another ad Wednesday in which he burns the Confederate flag.

Chambers, a Democratic community activist from Baton Rouge, released the “Scars and Bars” ad in conjunction with the Louisiana Legislature’s ongoing Special Session to redraw the state’s political lines.

The minute-long spot, titled “Scars and Bars,” shows Chambers burning a Confederate flag while discussing the legacy of Jim Crow.

The ad opens with Chambers holding an American flag and quoting the Constitution, then replacing it with a Confederate flag as he remarks that its remnants linger in much of the South. He says the right of Black Americans to vote and participate in democracy is under attack, calling gerrymandered districts “a byproduct of the Confederacy.”

“Our system isn’t broken,” he says at one point, setting the flag aflame. “It’s designed to do exactly what it’s doing, which is producing measurable inequity.” He added, “I do believe the South will rise again, but it will be on our terms.”

Chambers is considered a heavy underdog to unseat incumbent Republican U.S. Sen. John Kennedy in next fall’s election. He finished third in last summer’s 2nd Congressional District primary eventually won by Congressman Troy Carter, D-New Orleans.