By Rupert Howell
Petitions to put the Mississippi flag issue on the ballot which would make the 1894 flag the state’s constitutionally recognized flag have yet to be approved and are not circulating, according to Donald Wright, Jr., who commands the local camp of the Sons of the Confederacy.
The issue came up following a mass shooting in South Carolina earlier this year when the assailant had pictures of the Confederate flag included in his electronic media post.

Mississippi’s state flag, the flag of 1894, has a smaller version of that flag in the upper left hand corner. Mississippi voters in 2001 chose the flag 2-1 in a statewide referendum.

This newspaper received several calls from potential signers concerning where to obtain a petition to sign after a story in September 1 edition included news about Jeppie Barbour of Yazoo City meeting with concerned citizens to organize the petition drive.

Barbour explained that the wording of the petition was changed in the Secretary of State’s Office from, “the flag of 1894” to the “current flag.”

Barbour warned that he and others were concerned the Mississippi Legislature may take it upon themselves to change the flag prior to the ballot initiative planned for November 2016 election, making the “current flag” different from the flag of 1894,  the state flag now.

The petition wording was sent back to the Secretary of State’s office for rewording.

Barbour said although many of the state’s elected officials, including Governor Phil Bryant, say they are for keeping the 1894 flag, “They are politicians, ya’ know.”

Forty-five people from seven counties attended the organizational meeting Saturday, August 29, at the VFW Building in Batesville.

Barbour also warned that online petitions, although meaningful, would not take the place of the paper petition requirement. He stated 208,000 signatures would be needed, including 2,000 from Panola with 500 of those coming from the extreme western section once included in the old Second Congressional District bounday lines.

Wright said he would make public when petitions are received and will have a table set up at today’s fireworks display at Batesville Civic Center.

He can be reached at 934-6211.