Focus on The Proper Way to Hang a Confederate Flag and discuss the Exhibitions.
Schmucker Gallery, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, 2004: The lynching exhibit was initially set to be installed outdoors in front of Schmucker Gallery at Gettysburg College, and would have remained open to the public for three weeks. Sons of Confederate Veterans, Gettysburg Battlefield Preservation Association (GBPA), and other members of the community objected strongly to the exhibition. Detractors interpreted the exhibit as anti-southern heritage. Sims wrote about his motivation, "...Our sense of history is segregated, our social identity is fractured and our vocabularies for discussing race, symbols and respect are bare." Ultimately, Gettysburg College administration changed the location and duration of the exhibit. The Proper Way to Hang a Confederate Flag was installed inside of Schmucker Gallery. John Sims boycotted the exhibition.
Georgia State University, Atlanta, 2005: The Proper Way to Hang a Confederate Flag was shown in a group show, Potentially Harmful: The Art of American Censorship. The group exhibition examines the role of artistic controversy in shaping a free society. Through two exhibitions, presentations of spoken word and performance artists, artists' talks, panel discussions, a film screening and a series of legal seminars, this project reflects an environment that nurtures contentious art. Artists included in the exhibition are Lynda Benglis, Critical Art Ensemble, Sue Coe, Benita Carr, Alex Donis, Karen Finley, Eric Fischl, Tom Forsythe, John Jota Leaños, Gayla Lemke, Alma Lopez, Robert Mapplethorpe, Carolee Scheemann, Dread Scott, Andres Serrano, Elizabeth Sisco, Louis Hock, David Avalos, John Sims, John Anthony Trobaugh, Pat Ward Williams, Nancy Worthington, Marilyn Zimmerman, and The File.
Crossley Gallery, Sarasota, Florida, 2006: The Proper Way to Hang a Confederate Flag was shown at Ringling College of Art and Design in the Crowley Gallery alongside Dread Scott's What is the Proper Way to Hang a U.S. Flag?:
Bowery Poetry Club, New York, 2006: Recoloration Proclamation: The New York City Hangings was the title of the New York City exhibition. Acclaimed controversial performance artist Karen Finley performs a piece in response to Sims' work during the exhibition. 
Brogan Museum, Tallahassee, Florida, 2007: Sims' exhibition remained on display despite protests from the Sons of Confederate Veterans, who called it once again an affront to Southern heritage. The Mary Brogan Museum of Art and Science said it stands by Sims' work, which was part of a larger exhibit, AfroProvocations.
Kennedy Museum of Art, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio, 2017: On October 26, 2017, in front of the E.W. Scripps Amphitheater at Ohio University, Sims's concept came was fully realized. "Confederate Flag: A Public Hanging" took place as originally conceived: with community participation, music, speeches and readings. The flag was ritually hung from a 13-foot (4.0 m) gallows in a symbolic act of judgment against the history of white supremacy. Following this performance event, the flag was carried to the Kennedy Museum of Art and installed in the exhibition "Expression and Repression: Contemporary Art Censorship in America" as "The Proper Way to Hang a Confederate Flag." The exhibition also featured Kara Walker, Sue Coe and David Wojnarowicz, and was on view through December 22, 2017.
Mary Brogan Museum of Art and Science Sue Coe Eric Fischl Schmucker Gallery, Gettysburg Andres Serrano Benita Carr Robert Mapplethorpe Ohio University Karen Finley Gettysburg College Pat Ward Williams John Sims Kennedy Museum of Art Georgia State University lynching Dread Scott Critical Art Ensemble Brogan Museum Lynda Benglis Bowery Poetry Club Sons of Confederate Veterans Crossley Gallery, Sarasota