Faith Hill is calling on the state of Mississippi to change its flag because it features a Confederate flag within it, calling it a ‘symbol of terror’ on Twitter.
In a series of tweets on Thursday, the 52-year-old Mississippi native pleaded her case to change the flag amid growing pressure around the United States to remove symbols of racism and tributes to the Confederacy.
Her impassioned plea comes after the SEC and the NCAA announced they wouldn’t allow conference championship games to be played in the state under the flag, Walmart removed the Mississippi state flag from in front of its stores and NASCAR banned the Confederate flag.
Asking for change: Faith Hill is calling on lawmakers in Mississippi to change the state flag because it features a Confederate flag within its design, calling it a ‘symbol of terror’ on Twitter Thursday
‘To the Mississippi legislature: It’s time to change the state flag,’ Faith began on Twitter.
‘I am a proud MS girl and I love my home state. When I think of Mississippi, I think of my mom and dad, the church I grew up in, high school football, and where I fell in love with music.’
‘Now, it is time for the world to meet the Mississippi of today and not the Mississippi of 1894 (when the MS legislature voted on the current flag),’ she continued in another tweet.
‘I understand many view the current flag as a symbol of heritage and Southern pride, but we have to realize that this flag is a direct symbol of terror for our black brothers and sisters,’ Faith said.
Problematic: The flag of the state of Mississippi, around since the end of the 19th century, features a Confederate flag in the top left corner of it’s design along with three thick horizontal stripes of blue, white and red
Speaking up: In a series of tweets on Thursday, the 52-year-old Mississippi native pleaded her case to change the flag amid growing pressure around the United States to remove symbols of racism and tributes to the Confederacy
In her final Tweet on the matter, Faith asked lawmakers to step in and vote to remove the current flag.
She penned: ‘I urge the Mississippi legislature to vote tomorrow Friday, June 26 on ONE NEW FLAG, one that represents ALL of the citizens of Mississippi.’
The flag of the state of Mississippi, around since the end of the 19th century, features a Confederate flag in the top left corner of it’s design along with three thick horizontal stripes of blue, white and red.
It is the only one of the 50 states in the USA which still has the flag of the confederacy within its design.
‘A symbol of terror’: In her final Tweet on the matter, Faith asked lawmakers to step in and vote to remove the current flag; As of Friday, NBC News reported that State Rep. Robert Johnson III said that the votes needed to officially change the flag ‘appear to be there’
Faith is joined in her call to change the flag by Paramore’s Hayley Williams, another Mississippi born singer, who also took to Twitter Thursday to ask lawmakers to vote the flag out.
Williams, admitted on social media that she has ‘some awful memories from life there’ and noticed ‘racial inequities from a very young age.’
‘I am appealing to the Mississippi legislature to vote tomorrow (Friday, June 26) on a new flag, one that represents ALL of the citizens of MS,’ she tweeted.
More stars take up the charge: Faith is joined in her call to change the flag by Paramore’s Hayley Williams, another Mississippi born singer, who also took to Twitter Thursday to ask lawmakers to vote the flag out
Coaches from some of the biggest schools in the area like, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, and Jackson State, also lobbied for the flag to be changed.
Their pleas came after an announcement by the SEC and NCAA that no conference championship games would be played in the state under the current flag with the confederate design.
‘We removed the flag from our campus five years ago, so we’ve made it clear that it doesn’t represent who we are at Ole Miss,’ coach Lane Kiffin told ESPN.
Adding: ‘This is extremely important to me and to our players. Time to change!’
Sports world: Coaches from some of the biggest schools in the area like, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, and Jackson State, also lobbied for the flag to be changed after the SEC and NCAA announced they wouldn’t play championship games in the state (Lane Kiffin from Ole Miss pictured)
As of Friday, NBC News reported that State Rep. Robert Johnson III said that the votes needed to officially change the flag ‘appear to be there.’
Debate over the appropriateness of displaying the confederate flag has been heating up amid a race revolution as weeks of protests continue across the country following a string of innocent Black people who were killed at the hands of police.
The death of George Floyd, who was killed when a now-former Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck for over eight minutes, was the catalyst to the current reckoning of racism and white supremacy in America.
On the track: NASCAR announced earlier this month that the flying of Confederate flags would be banned from their races
NASCAR announced earlier this month that the flying of Confederate flags would be banned from their races.
The Confederacy was an area of slave-holding states below the Mason-Dixon line that seceded from the union over the issue of wanting to keep slavery in place, leading to the U.S. Civil War. It existed for four and a half years.
Recently, country music groups Dixie Chicks and Lady Antebellum each rebranded to The Chicks and Lady A, respectively, in order to remove any connection with with their names and the slavery of the Confederacy.
Country music: Dixie Chicks and Lady Antebellum each rebranded to The Chicks and Lady A, respectively, in order to remove any connection with with their names and the slavery of the Confederacy (The Chicks pictured in 2014)