In a divided vote Tuesday, McComb’s city board decided to take down the Mississippi state flag from the board meeting room in city hall, although it will still fly outside.
Selectman Ronnie Brock made an impromptu motion at the end of the meeting to remove the flag from the board room.
With the exception of Mayor Whitney Rawlings’ tie-breaking decision, the vote fell along racial lines, with white selectmen Ted Tullos, Michael Cameron and Tommy McKenzie voting to keep the flag, and black selectmen Donovan Hill, Tammy Witherspoon and Brock voting for its removal.
The mayor’s office confirmed today that the matter of flying the state flag outside city hall has not been discussed.
Leading up to the vote, Brock said, “I personally find the state flag offensive, mayor.”
After the board added the item to the agenda, selectmen engaged in a discussion about the flag.
“The state flag has a symbol of hate within it. It has always been a symbol of hate, from the very beginning,” Brock said.
Defending his position, Brock read from the document in which Mississippi declared it secession from the Union in 1861 and noted its position on slavery.
“Our position is thoroughly identified with the institution of slavery — the greatest material interest of the world,” Brock read from the declaration. “These products have become necessities of the world, and a blow at slavery is a blow at commerce and civilization.”
Brock said this was an example of the general beliefs that surrounded the establishment of the rebel flag as a symbol of slavery, a symbol of hate and “it’s an insult to me.”
Tullos held a different opinion.
“A piece of cloth cannot hurt a person. It is mean and vindictive people that hurt others,” he said. “I love my country and I love my state. I don’t agree with erasing history. The flag means different things to different people.”
“My reasons are financial reasons,” Hill said. “I know for a fact that this city is missing out on not only businesses but there are national organizations and conferences that will not even consider coming here because of that flag. Never mind that we have the venues to accommodate them. We have a lot in our area to offer visitors. They don’t want to come because of that stigma that comes along with the state flag.”
Brock said the American flag and Mississippi’s flag do not go together.
“I love my country, too,” he said to Tullos. “But the two flags don’t mix. One represents freedom and one represents hate.”
The atmosphere in the room grew tense as groans of disagreement emerged from the board members and the audience.
The mayor, sensing growing tension around the board, immediately intervened.
“That’s our flag, this is our state, but I see the point of contention,” Rawlings said. “I would have liked to let our legislators handle this, but we must make that decision for ourselves.”
The Legislature doesn’t reconvene in January, and it’s not likely to take up the issue in the meantime.
Selectman Tommy McKenzie said he had a statement prepared for this occasion. In it he pointed out that McComb’s citizens are more segregated than they have been in years.
“I feel like this has created more divisiveness, but I have been prepared for this motion.” McKenzie said as he began to read from his statement: “Everybody cries, ‘Take down the state flag and move on.’ It might be the correct action from a public entity standpoint. Will it change anything in the hearts and minds of people, black or white? I don’t think so.
“It is overdue to visit the flag issue, but the flag is just a symptom to the disease. Just removing the flag is a futile attempt to improve society,” he said.
After the meeting the mayor said changing the flag is inevitable.
“Change is sweeping across the South,” Rawlings said. “It’s a very divisive issue, so I voted to remove the flag.”
