Mississippi governor refuses to give personal stance on state flag with Confederate emblem
The reignited debate over whether to remove the Confederate emblem from the Mississippi state flag has not prompted Gov. Tate Reeves to alter his stance on the issue.
The governor was asked about the flag multiple times during Monday’s press conference, after a weekend of protests across the state calling for an end to police brutality and racial injustice sparked by the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man.
“My position has not changed,” Reeves said. “I spent much of (the 2019 campaign) telling people of this state what I believe. There will come a time at some point in which the people of Mississippi want to change the flag.
“People have to make that decision. They don’t want a backroom deal by politicians in Mississippi.”
Reeves also received questions about his personal position on the flag and if he thinks it represents today’s Mississippi, but he refused to answer.
He continues to point back to 2001, when Mississippians voted 64% to 36% to reject a plan to change the state flag to a new design.
“I firmly believe if politicians in Jackson decided that they were going to do something against the will of the people, we would have seriously, seriously upset Mississippians. And quite justifiably so,” he said. “If, however, Mississippians come together and decide to go in a different direction, then I think the outcome would bring people together.
“That’s the reason I have repeatedly said, and continued to say, if the flag is going to change it should be changed by vote of the people.”
Although he was reluctant to give an inch on the matter, Reeves said he understands why the issue has again been pushed to the forefront following widespread protests over racial injustice across the United States.
“I know the last few weeks have brought increased conversation on that, and many other topics. Justifiably so,” he said. “But a problem we have right now is people don’t trust politicians, because they tell them one thing in an election year and go do something else once they’re in office.”
Reeves said he would sign off on a referendum for Mississippi voters if the Legislature decided to put the flag issue up for a vote.
“I do want to point out that every single Mississippian has the ability to get 120,000 signatures to put an issue on the ballot,” he said. “At one point, it was impossible to get something put on the ballot. Nowadays, it’s not nearly as difficult.”
Mississippi Speaker of the House Phillip Gunn and U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker have both voiced support for changing the flag, first stating their position five years ago after the mass shooting where a white supremacist killed nine black worshipers in a church in Columbia, South Carolina.
Gunn and Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann are in agreement that a vote is the best way to change the flag, and Reeves has been reluctant to allow the state’s government to make the choice without getting a statewide vote.
“I think at some point (voters) will change the flag, but it has to come from a vote from the people Mississippi,” Reeves said.
