Mississippi legislators voted on Sunday to remove the Confederate emblem from the state flag, a historical win following the repeated deaths of Black civilians at the hands of state sanctioned violence.
The move reverses Mississippi holding the dishonor of being the only state with the emblem on the flag.
“For the people who hold the palm of Mississippi in their hands, for their wisdom and their strength, for them to vote the way they did is all but unbelievable to me, but I am ever so thankful for that vote.”
On the local level, Mayor Johnny Mage of Laurel, Mississippi, cried openly as he signed an executive order to remove the state flag from all city-owned buildings.
“I have lived through some things with this flag and as they told Dr. King to wait — time for waiting is over.”
