The city council unanimously passed a resolution on Tuesday urging the Mississippi Legislature to "respectfully retire" the flag that has flown over the state since 1894.The resolution acknowledged that the flag — with its 13 white stars on a blue X with a red background — means different things to different people, but said for many it is "a painful reminder of past days of transgressions in this State and has also been used by some as an image of hatred, divisiveness, and violence."It said the flag does not represent the ideals and principles of the state or the city. Gulfport is the second-largest city in Mississippi, with a population estimated at 71,705, according to the US Census Bureau.Gulfport Mayor Billy Hewes' office posted video of the flag being taken down at City Hall on its Facebook page. It was replaced with the Magnolia flag, which was adopted as Mississippi's first official flag in 1861 when the state seceded from the United States to join the Confederacy.Mississippi is the only state that still includes the symbol in its flag. A bipartisan group of state lawmakers is discussing changing the flag and cities around the United States are wrestling with how to deal with Confederate statues and other symbols.Republican Gov. Tate Reeves told reporters last week that he wouldn't support changing the flag unless the people of Mississippi voted for it.In 2001, 65% of Mississippi residents voted to keep the flag.Wallace Mason, the only Gulfport resident to speak in favor of keeping the flag at Tuesday's meeting, told the council that the city shouldn't overturn the will of the people."It's like spitting in the face of the voters who won," he said. "Read More – Source
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