On Dec.14 the Escambia County Commission took the unprecedented action of removing four of the historic five flags that had flown at the Pensacola Bay Center for the past several decades.

While it appears the original intent was to match the City of Pensacola's flag displays, the final vote removed the Spanish, French, British and Confederate flags by a 4-1 margin. Many in Pensacola and Escambia County are asking how can this be?

Our community has a rich and diverse history that is unmatched within the United States. From the landing of Don Tristan de Luna in 1559 our shores have seen countless historical events that have shaped not only Pensacola but America.

In 1781 General Bernardo de Galvez defeated the British here and helped the colonies achieve American independence. General Andrew Jackson accepted Florida from Spain in 1821 in downtown's Plaza Ferdinand.

In 1861 the eyes of America were on Pensacola Bay when Confederate and Union troops faced off, later fought a battle on Santa Rosa Island and engaged in two major artillery bombardments. All of these events occurred under our five flags.

In 2000, when questions arose concerning the "historical accuracy" of the five flags a long public debate ensued which resulted in a committee chaired by U.S. District Judge Lacey Collier ruling on the correct five flags. Those flags have continued to be flown by the City of Pensacola for the past 15 years.

Now some City Council members appear to be considering removal of all of the five flags with the exception of Old Glory. It seems that our community has went from "historical accuracy" to historical cleansing.

That any elected official would take action to remove these historic flags is beyond belief. Over 450 years of history cannot be re-written by self-serving politicians who are judging past history with today's values.

Spanish General de Galvez was recently named an honorary American citizen by the U.S. Congress one of only eight individuals to be so honored. If he were alive today, I am sure he would decline this honor if he knew our community had removed the Spanish flag.

In 2009, King Juan Carlos of Spain made a historic visit to Pensacola to celebrate our 450th anniversary. I wonder what the former King would think of our community now that his Spanish flag has been lowered by our elected officials?

During the Dec.14 meeting several crude attempts were made to equate the Confederate States to Nazi Germany. Those trying to make this reach obviously failed to take into consideration the thousands of American soldiers that fought and died to defeat Germany who were grandsons of Confederate soldiers. In fact, two of our greatest World War Two leaders Generals George S. Patton and Douglas MacArthur were both proud grandsons of Confederate soldiers.

The history of Pensacola is not neat and clean, in fact some of it has been very ugly. All of the nations represented by the five flags have been guilty of many transgressions: genocide, slavery, forced invasions, war crimes, religious persecution and colonial exploitation. The U.S. flag is no exception to these and some may argue our nation is still involved today in far off lands.

In 2000 during the flag debate government representatives of Spain, France and England expressed concerns at the possibility of their flags being removed. One can only wonder what the international perception of our community will be if these historic flags are faced with continued attack and possible removal.

Cities such as Charleston and Savannah have embraced their history and used it as an economic engine to provide needed jobs and revenue for their communities. Recently several new businesses have been established with local historic themes. With our forts, the planned Pensacola Bay ferry, NAS Pensacola and the Museum of Naval Aviation the time has come to market Pensacola and Escambia County as a historic tourist destination not to remove symbols of our rich past.

I have always been proud to call Pensacola my home. Our community is a very special place with many people of varied backgrounds, beliefs and history. It is time that we respect the history of all of our fellow citizens and stop trying to make history into something it is not or never will be.

I urge the Escambia County Commission to immediately reverse their action of Dec. 14 and return the historic five flags to the Bay Center. I also strongly recommend the Pensacola City Council totally reject any efforts to change the five flags displays within the City. Any other action would be a travesty and underscore the lack of appreciation some of our elected officials have for the 450 year history of the community they have been elected to serve.

Phillip White is a native of Pensacola and a former member of the Gulf Islands National Seashore Advisory Committee. He is a retired U.S. Navy Chief Petty Officer.