Ole Miss just took down the state flag amid backlash over its Confederate symbol

The University of Mississippi removed the state flag from campus Monday morning amid backlash from students and faculty over the Confederate battle symbol in its corner, according to a news release.

"The University of Mississippi community came to the realization years ago that the Confederate battle flag did not represent many of our core values, such as civility and respect for others," interim Chancellor Morris Stocks said in a statement.

The flag is being moved to the Ole Miss archives after the student government voted to ask the administration to take it down. The decision comes as part of a larger, years-long state and nationwide debate about Confederate symbols, which many feel hold racist connotations. South Carolina removed the Confederate flag from its statehouse grounds in July, shortly after a white gunman allegedly killed nine people in a historically black Charleston church.

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