South Carolina governor signs bill to remove Confederate flag

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R) on Thursday signed a bill to remove the Confederate flag from the Statehouse grounds

 

“This is a story about action. This is a story about the history of South Carolina,” Haley said during a press conference after signing the bill.

Haley called for the flag to be removed from the Statehouse grounds days after a June 17 shooting at a historic black church in Charleston, S.C., that left nine people dead. 

 

“May we never forget the actions those people took to get us to this point today,” Haley said of those who died. She was flanked by members of their families on Thursday.

 

The state House voted 97-23 early Thursday to remove the flag after more than 12 hours of debate. The South Carolina Senate voted earlier this week to move the legislation.

The flag will be officially removed on Friday morning.

An agreement among legislators transferred the Confederate symbol from above the state capitol to a nearby Confederate war memorial in 2000. 

But the shooting last month rekindled outcry against the flag there, and sparked national debate between those who view it as a racist symbol compared to one of Southern pride. 

“We saw members start to see what it was like to be in each others’ shoes,” Haley said of the debate among state legislators this week. 

“We heard about the true honor of heritage and tradition,” she said. “We heard about the true pain that many had felt.”

Updated at 4:50 p.m.