The Confederate Flag which has flown at the South Carolina Capitol grounds in Columbia for 54 years will be taken down today.
Yesterday, after an "emotionally charged" debate, South Carolina lawmakers, in a 94-20 vote, voted to remove the Confederate from Capitol grounds, according to HLN.
"Today, in South Carolina, division has been replaced with unity. Our state Capitol Building - a building that belongs to all South Carolinians - will house flags that belong to all South Carolinians as does the flag of our state and the flag of our country," Charleston Mayor Joseph P. Riley Jr. said in a statement, HLN reported.
Now the flag will be moved to an exhibit at the South Carolina Confederate Relic Room & Military Museum just a mile from the state Capitol Building.
The flag-lowering ceremony, which will be held later today, is expected to be quick and will be led by Department of Public Safety Director Leroy Smith, according to CNN.
The battle to remove the flag has been a long one, starting when Dylann Roof killed 9 people at a church in Charleston. Major events during this battle include calls for stricter gun patrol and even a brawl.
Gov. Nikki Haley praised the House's action, saying that it heralded "a new day in South Carolina", according to the Los Angeles Times.
"Today, as the Senate did before them, the House of Representatives has served the state of South Carolina and her people with great dignity," she said in a statement on Facebook. "I'm grateful for their service and their compassion. It is a new day in South Carolina, a day we can all be proud of, a day that truly brings us all together as we continue to heal, as one people and one state."
