People throughout the state are divided on the idea of changing Mississippi’s flag, and Marion Countians seem to be in the same boat.
Nine people throughout Columbia were asked Tuesday about their opinions regarding the flag by The Columbian-Progress with five saying it should be changed and four believing it shouldn’t.
Mississippi is the only state in the country with its flag incorporating the Confederate battle emblem. The current flag was adopted in 1894. During a 2001 state referendum, 64% voted to keep the flag. A June 10 statewide poll by Chism Strategies showed 46% of Mississippi voters prefer keeping the flag while 44.9% want a change. A poll conducted by the C-P on social media showed 72% of the 358 respondents prefer retaining the flag.
With the current state of the country, a new push for another flag is being made by a bipartisan group of lawmakers, backed by Speaker of the House Philip Gunn, R-Clinton. Gov. Tate Reeves has been against changing the flag and said June 8 that it should be decided by the people of Mississippi and not in a “backroom deal by a bunch of politicians in Jackson.”
Among people interviewed in Columbia this week, Devin Scott posited the flag shouldn’t be replaced because it didn’t represent the South as much as it did the war that was going on.
“I personally don’t think it’s a sign of racism, but everyone’s got their own opinion,” he added.
Scott’s fiancée, Hannah, disagreed.
“If this massive group of the world finds it offensive, what’s so wrong about changing it and hanging it in a museum? The world is about change, and it’s 2020 now,” she said. “So why not (change it)? We can always design a new one.”
Chief Ayodele Okanlawon said he thinks it should be replaced because he said it’s antiquated and has lost its meaning.
“Primarily, I think a lot of times we have things mixed things up because we see black and white when really there’s just one color: brown. There’s lighter brown to darker brown. It misleads us and makes us think we’re different people when we’re all the same. We just have a different pigmentation in our skin,” he reasoned. “The flag is irrelevant when we, as a people, have to recognize we’re all living under the sun and all breathe the same air.”
Robert Taylor wholeheartedly believes it should be changed, saying “change that (expletive).”
Ken Ray said the state flag definitely shouldn’t be changed and that it doesn’t have anything to do with slavery. Lana Thornhill agreed and said the flag is fine the way it is.
Willie Johnson was direct in his opinion on the matter, saying it’s racist and should be changed.
However, some were worried about whitewashing the past by changing it.
“It don’t need to be changed,” Glenn Thompson said. “It’s our history. That can’t change.”
Brandy Ard said he thinks it should be changed because it would help eliminate unnecessary division and confusion.
“Some people believe in it, and some people don’t,” he said.
