A coalition of community, civic, and business leaders recently announced its unwavering support of the new state flag design unveiled by the Commission to Redesign the Mississippi State Flag.
The Alliance for Mississippi’s Future, working in partnership with the Mississippi Economic Council – the State Chamber of Commerce, commends the nine-member Commission for its diligent work in reviewing more than 3,000 submissions, then undertaking an ardent, detailed process and working with various designers before determining the final design.
The design features a white magnolia on a blue banner with red and gold bars on each end. The magnolia is encircled by 20 five-point stars, plus a star representing indigenous Native Americans, and the words “In God We Trust.”
The Commission voted to name the design as the In God We Trust flag, which now goes before the Mississippi voters in a statewide election on November 3.
“This design is one that the Alliance for Mississippi’s Future believes will move our state forward, and now our mission is to make sure everyone understands the importance of voting in November,” said Haley Fisackerly, Chairman of the Alliance for Mississippi’s Future. “We believe that a new state flag will enhance our state’s economic development efforts, eliminate obstacles faced in the past, and energize our communities by representing all our citizens.
“A new flag will signal to the world that this is a new day in Mississippi.”
Should a majority Vote Yes in November, the new design will officially be adopted as the new state flag of Mississippi during the next legislative session. A no vote would result in the state being without a flag for a year until the Commission submits a new design.
Mississippi has not had a state flag since July 1, when the previous state flag was permanently retired. The Mississippi Legislature on June 27 passed a bill that would relinquish the state flag and form the flag’s redesign commission. The bill required that the Confederate battle flag not be included in the design, and the motto “In God We Trust” be included.
The Commission was chaired by former Supreme Court Justice Reuben Anderson and received public input through the Mississippi Department of Archives & History website after several possible designs were considered.
“We commend the Legislature for including ‘In God We Trust,’ and the wording works well with the selected design,” said Scott Waller, President and CEO of the Mississippi Economic Council. “Traditionally Mississippians have placed a lot of importance on our faith and In God We Trust will resonate well with our citizens and their desires of what should be included in our new flag.
“This is an opportunity to unify Mississippi with a symbol that reflects who we are, while allowing us to look to a brighter future and create new opportunities for moving our state forward.”
The Alliance has never advocated for a specific flag until now, but simply believes the state will benefit with a new flag.