Politics

Mississippi Lawmakers Vote To Drop Confederate Emblem From State Flag

Anthony Hervey stands in the town square
Virginia Kruta Associate Editor
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Mississippi lawmakers voted Sunday to change the state flag, removing an image with ties to the Confederacy.

According to a report from the Associated Press, the measure passed both the House and the Senate in rapid succession, and garnered broad bipartisan support. (RELATED: Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves Says He’ll Sign A Bill To Change The State Flag If One Reaches His Desk)

The flag came under renewed scrutiny as protesters have recently called for the removal of Confederate symbols and statues nationwide — some toppling or vandalizing those statues themselves.

Mississippi State University running back Kylin Hill went so far as to threaten to sit out the upcoming season if the flag was not changed.

“Either change the flag or I won’t be representing this State anymore & I meant that .. I’m tired,” Hill tweeted.

Republican Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves said Saturday that he was ready to sign a bill to change the flag.

“The legislature has been deadlocked for days as it considers a new state flag. The argument over the 1894 flag has become as divisive as the flag itself and it’s time to end it. If they send me a bill this weekend, I will sign it,” Reeves tweeted.