Mississippi gears up to remove Confederate symbol from state flag

Amid rising protest against the racism faced by the African-American community in the US, several institutions and organisations are doing their best to show solidarity with the 'Black Lives Matter' campaign.

In such an attempt, the state of Mississippi might change or remove the confederate symbol from its flag. Lawmakers are getting ready to cast vote to pass a bill to remove the Confederate battle emblem from the state flag.

Tate Reeves, the 65th Governor of Mississippi, on Saturday said he is willing to sign a bill to change the flag if the Legislature passes one. This is coming after he previously said he would not veto a bill.

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"The legislature has been deadlocked for days as it considers a new state flag. The argument over the 1894 flag has become as divisive as the flag itself and it’s time to end it," he tweeted.

The problem that arises is that theMississippi's annual legislative session is almost over. As it takes two-thirds majority of the House and Senate to consider a bill after the deadline has passed, the leaders and lawmakers are working their way to secure these majorities.

First, the lawmakers will have to secure a majority, and then they have to secure a majority to pass it to the Governor. The whole process, which could take anything between one to three days, is underway right now.

The state of Mississippi is the only one in the US which has a confederate symbol in its flag now. The symbol has been a part of the flag since 1894, when white supremacists added it to the flag as a silent protests against the rise in political power of the African-American community post the Civil War.