Stars & Bars

I think the most Southern symbol out there is the Confederate flag, the stars & bars. Everything else might be largely associated with the South, but the Confederate flag is always associated with the South. Not only is it always associated with the south, it's quite common to see it. It's on hats, shirts, swimsuits, belt buckles, bumperstickers, and the flags themselves flown outside houses (it was on the Georgia State flag until 2001).

The stereotypical southern truck will have several bumper stickers about southern heritage with Confederate flags on them and will be driven by a guy with a shirt or hat that has a rebel flag on it (sometimes both). There is a horrendous statue of Nathan Bedford Forrest on the highway coming into Nashville, and it has either all 50 state flags or just the state flags of the Southern States in a semi-circle around it. Above every state flag however there is a Confederate flag flying.

A lot of people believe the Confederate flag is a symbol of racism. A lot of other people believe that it is not, that it is a symbol of heritage, a government, or rebellion (hence the name "rebel flag"). The ongoing argument, shown in the video at the end, is whether this flag stands for slavery and racism or not. It's different for everyone. For some people racism and slavery is all they see when they see the Confederate flag. For me, it is a symbol of my heritage not a symbol of racism or rebellion.