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<\/a><\/p>\nSome lawmakers feel universities have gone too far. At an Oct. 2015 Hattiesburg press conference, Gov. Phil Bryant said, \u201cI don\u2019t think they have any legal authority whatsoever to determine what the state flag is and where it flies, particularly over public buildings.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a later Associated Press interview, Bryant elaborated \u201cI think that if you\u2019ve got a publicly funded institution like that, they should be respectful of the people of the state,\u201d Bryant said in the interview.<\/p>\n
Rep. Dana Criswell (R-Olive Branch) intends to force a definitive answer. On Jan. 19, Criswell submitted a bill that would require public colleges and universities to \u201chonor the will of the people\u201d by flying the state flag.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is shameful for a university president to believe he has the right to override the decision of the people of this state and remove their flag from their university,\u201d Criswell said via a Facebook post.<\/p>\n
Flag supporters held a rally at the Capitol on Jan. 19, one day after the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday observance.<\/p>\n
Rev. Ray Peacock, a pastor at Barrontown Baptist Church, told those assembled \u201cWe\u2019re in a war, whether you know it or not. The legislature and our enemies have drawn the battle lines.\u201d<\/p>\n
If not battle lines, there are ideological lines. \u201cIt\u2019s not just a flag\u2026 symbols mean a lot and the flags we choose to fly over our institutions mean something. I can\u2019t pledge allegiance to (that flag),\u201d said Bryan Eason from the coalition One Flag For All.<\/p>\n
Justin McCreary, minister of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Jackson, agrees.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe flag stands for the death of every man, woman, and child that died under slavery, and that goes beyond murder, it is genocide. How can we stand proudly as one Mississippi under a flag that symbolizes genocide and ever consider ourselves people of honor and grace? The simple answer is we can\u2019t,\u201d said McCreary.<\/p>\n
U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS) believes the current flag gives others a false impression about Mississippi and her people.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter reflection and prayer, I now believe our state flag should be put in a museum and replaced by one that is more unifying to all Mississippians,\u201d said Wicker in a June 2015 statement.<\/p>\n
Voters will have the opportunity to settle this debate at the polls in November 2016. There are three proposed constitutional amendments proposed.<\/p>\n
Initiatives 54 and 58 are constitutional amendments that would ensure that the current flag remains the official State Flag of Mississippi. Initiative 55 would alter the Mississippi constitution so that any state flag could not contain or reference the Confederate battle flag or the Confederacy.<\/p>\n
The following MC301 Students contributed information used in this story written by Deirdra Glover: Ronza Anderson, Maya Parker, and My\u2019Una Jones.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/files\/2016\/02\/Screen-Shot-2016-02-18-at-12.09.28-PM.jpg\")
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![\"\"](\"http:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/files\/2016\/02\/1flag.jpg\")
<\/a>Deirdra Harris Glover