South Carolina House Approves Removal of Confederate Flag
By Fox News. The South Carolina House approved taking down the Confederate flag from Capitol grounds early Thursday, a stunning reversal in a state that was the first to leave the Union in 1860 and raised the flag again at its Statehouse more than 50 years ago to protest the civil rights movement.
The move came after more than 13 hours of contentious debate, weeks after the deadly shootings of nine black church members, including a state senator, at a Bible study in Charleston. The House approved the Senate bill 93-27, and still has one more vote than appeared to be perfunctory since they had met two-thirds approval.
It is possible the flag could come down Thursday or Friday, but the exact timing is unknown.
The bill is set to go to Republican Gov. Nikki Haley, who supports it.
“Today, as the Senate did before them, the House of Representatives has served the state of South Carolina and her people with great dignity,” Haley said in a statement early Thursday. “I’m grateful for their service and their compassion. It is a new day in South Carolina, a day were can all be proud of, a day that truly brings us all together as we continue to heal, as one people and one state.” (Read more from “South Carolina House Approves Removal of Confederate Flag” HERE)
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Disney World Removes Confederate Flag From Epcot Display
By Sandra Pedicini. Walt Disney World has joined the list of businesses and governments distancing themselves from the Confederate flag.
The resort has removed a version of the Confederate banner from a flag display in Epcot’s American Adventure. Disney acknowledged it took down the flag recently but would not comment further.
The banner, which was among more than 40 displayed from throughout America’s history, was the third flag of the Confederacy. The familiar “Southern Cross” symbol does not take up the entire banner as it does in the Confederate battle flag. Instead the blue cross with white stars on a red background is displayed in the upper-left-hand corner, bordered by a field of white with a thick, red stripe at the other end.
Sheri Labowski, a Connecticut tourist relaxing outside the American Adventure on Wednesday, said she agreed with the flag’s removal.
“I think in this day and age we shouldn’t be promoting a part of our history we’re not proud of,” she said. (Read more from this story HERE)
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Poll: Most Don’t Think Confederate Flag Racist
By Jesse Byrnes. Most Americans continue to think of the Confederate flag as emblematic of Southern pride and not inherently racist, according to a new Gallup poll, though views are divided along party lines.
Some 54 percent of Americans say the flag represents not racism but Southern heritage, but Democratic support for the Confederate battle banner has dropped precipitously, according to the survey.
About a third of Democrats, 32 percent, view the flag as symbolic of Southern pride, almost half of the 61 percent who held that view when surveyed in 1992.
Meanwhile, views among Republicans have remained relatively consistent, ticking upward 3 points to 78 percent since 1992, when a full three-quarters of Republicans viewed the flag as a Southern symbol. (Read more from this story HERE)
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