Mississippi governor signs bill to remove flag

On Tuesday, Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves signed a bill that will remove the state flag that featured the Confederate battle emblem, Report says, citing CBS News. The bill's passage comes after weeks of renewed backlash toward the flag, which many have decried as a symbol of racism and white supremacy.

In a speech given before signing the bill, Reeves said he disagrees with the removal of statues throughout the country, but said, "I also understand the need to commit the 1894 flag to history and find a banner that is a better emblem for all Mississippi."

"There is a difference between monuments and flags," Reeves added. "A monument acknowledges and honors our past. A flag is a symbol of our present of our people and our future. For those reasons, we need a new symbol."

The signing caps a swift referendum on the flag from the Mississippi state Legislature, which passed the bill on Sunday following weeks of racial justice protests across the country. The flag, first adopted in 1894, has red, white, and blue stripes with the Confederate battle emblem in one corner.

A commission will now develop a new flag design without the Confederate emblem that includes the phrase "In God, We Trust." Mississippi residents will head to the polls in November to choose a new state flag. The old flag design will not be an option, per the legislation.