Magnolia aldermen appear set to vote tonight to remove the Mississippi flag from city hall as controversy over the flag’s meaning continues to be debated.
The argument over whether to keep the flag has exposed deeply-held rifts about its symbolism.
After a brief discussion, Mayor Anthony Witherspoon and all four aldermen in attendance — Mercedes Ricks, Lonnie Cox, Sharon Burton and Becky Magee — expressed a united front to vote to remove the flag at tonight’s board meeting. Alderman Joe Cornacchionne was absent Monday and is not expected to be on hand for tonight’s vote. He could not be reached for comment this morning.
“We want something that every resident is proud of and would fly in their yards, one that reflects the unity of the people,” Witherspoon said. “Right now, I know a lot of people who don’t wave the flag in their yards.”
“The state flag has always been a controversy,” Cox said. “It’s time we moved forward with something else. I believe we should retire it and put it in a museum. I’m all for keeping it in that venue.”
Gov. Phil Bryant has said he supports abiding by a 2001 vote in which residents supported keeping the state flag. Cox said he talked to the governor about the issue Thursday.
“I’m proud of Mississippi ... but the flag should not be an issue. I’m for what’s best for the state,” Cox said. “You’ve got too much hatred for it, and that’s on both sides — hatred from those who want to keep it and hatred from those who want to remove it.”
Witherspoon, who put the vote to remove the flag on the agenda, said it doesn’t represent all Mississippians equally.
“Being African-American myself, the flag is not something I would like flying in my front yard, and a lot of people feel the same way about it,” he said.
Magee agreed. “I would like to have a flag that represents everyone in the city buildings of Magnolia. I don’t think our state flag does, and I think it’s a great idea to have a city flag, one that represents everyone,” she said.
Alderman Mercedes Ricks, who immigrated here from Colombia, said she is aware of the deeply held beliefs involved in the flag debate.
“There will be some people upset out there, I understand that. But as an immigrant, when I moved here, I looked at the U.S. flag as one that included everyone. The more I research the state flag, the more division I see from it and those who support it,” she said.
The mayor discussed the timing of the flag removal.
“It’s funny how history can occur. Sometimes a positive can come out of tragedy; that’s how I see us dealing with this issue,” he said, referring to a recent race-based mass murder in South Carolina that prompted flag debate.
Aldermen discussed designing a city flag and placing it in front of city hall instead of the state flag.
“When I was at the Mississippi Municipal League conference, I was asked who is going to carry the city flag. Sadly, we don’t have one,” Witherspoon said. “So, the other option was to carry the state flag, which I did not want to do. My attention went from replacing the Confederate flag to one where we might have our own city flag.”
Cox said he’d like to see a magnolia on a city flag. “We’re the Magnolia State, and that’s the name of our city, so it would make sense to include that in the flag.”
Cox also said he would like the flag to feature the current state colors — red, white and blue.
But beyond that, the mayor said he would like the city to put together a committee to discuss the matter. He suggested South Pike School District officials lend a hand in getting students involved.
“We would like the young people have a part in putting this together. That’s a cool thing to be a part of, I think,” he said.
