Breaking: In Second Of Three Votes, South Carolina Senate Votes 37-3 To Remove Confederate Flag

South Carolina is poised to finally remove the Confederate flag from the State House, if today’s vote is any indication.

This afternoon, after several hours of debate that included an attack on same-sex marriage, South Carolina state senators voted 37-3 to remove the Confederate flag from in front of the State House. This was the econd of three necessary votes, the final vote is slated for Tuesday.

“The number one indicator of how you’re going to vote is not how wealthy you are, how educated you are,” Sen. Vincent Sheheen, the bill’s sponsor, told his colleagues. “It’s not your position on issues, it’s not your belief in environmental issues or public service — it is the color of your skin. That’s the number one indication of how you’re going to vote. We’ve gotta take whatever steps we can to begin to change that. This is one small step that reduces that culture of division. It is not about the history. It is not about heritage. It is not about hate. It’s about how to heal wounds stretch back many, many years. And most importantly it’s about the present and the future,” Sheheen said.

“When we vote for this bill to remove the flag it won’t be because of what happened a couple of weeks ago,” Sheheen added, referring to the murder of nine Black parishioners in a Charleston church by a 21-year old white supremacist. “But what happened a couple of weeks ago opened the eyes of many people in this chamber and many people in this state. I think I heard that same feeling from the senator from Pickens. I believe out of horror can come healing and I believe it will. I believe that out of death can come redemption and I believe it will. And I believe that we can do this if we do it together.” 

WISTV reports that the South Carolina House “would have at least two days to deal with the bill and any amendments and there are only a couple there. At least one senator, Sen. Lee Bright, is proposing an amendment that would put the debate up for a statewide referendum.”

Sen. Bright this morning launched an ugly, vicious attack on same-sex marriage and LGBT people instead of debating the issue of the flag. 

“The devil is taking control of this land and we’re not stopping him,” Bright preached, suggesting the state “get out of the business of marriage, because we cannot succumb to what’s being done to the future of this nation.”

 

Image via Wikimedia