Officials at the Du Quoin, Illinois, state fair have banned the group Confederate Railroad from its stage because of the band’s “offensive” name, despite the fact that they have been performing under the name for over 30 years.
Formed in 1987, the southern rock band has released six albums and won several spots on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts throughout the years. But that established history is not good enough for fair officials in the southern Illinois county of Perry.
According to the Southern Illinoisan, Du Quoin State Fair manager, Josh Gross, released a statement saying, “The Illinois Department of Agriculture has removed Confederate Railroad from our 2019 Du Quoin State Fair Grandstand lineup. While every artist has a right to expression, we believe this decision is in the best interest of serving all of the people in our state.”
Thus far, the Illinois Department of Agriculture has refused to make a statement of its own.
The move has sparked a boycott of the fair, with supporters taking to Twitter with the hashtag #boycottduquoinstatefair. In addition, a Facebook page was formed that has gained over two thousand members in only four days.
The ban also drew the ire of country star Charlie Daniels who excoriated the decision.
“This political correctness thing is totally out of control,” Daniels wrote on Friday. “When a fair cancels the Confederate Railroad band because of their name, it’s giving in to fascism, plain and simple, and our freedom disappears piece by piece. Sick of it.”
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.