By Vania Raebel | October 4, 2019
The Magnolia State, Part 2
On January 9, 1861, Mississippi became the second state to declare secession from the United States, joining the Confederate movement that advocated for the right to hold slaves. A part of its state flag, located in the canton, or the upper left corner, is the Confederate Battle Flag, called the Southern Cross. As seen in the image below, the flag contains a blue cross emblazoned with thirteen 5-point stars, the stars representing each Confederate state.
During the 2015 shooting in Charleston, South Carolina, nine black parishioners of the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church were murdered by a Confederate follower and white supremacist. Protests were since carried out to demand Mississippi cease the use of their controversial state flag. Several counties in the state, as well as public universities, have already refused to use the flag until the Confederate sigil is removed. The flag has also been removed at the displays of 50 flags in New Jersey, Philadelphia, and Oregon.
