Haley, Graham to call for Confederate flag removal
CHARLESTON, S.C. — Unconfirmed reports indicate South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham will call for the Confederate flag to be removed from a memorial on the grounds of South Carolina’s Statehouse.
The flag has long-been a source of controversy, predating last week's slaughter of nine worshippers at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church.
The Sons of Confederate Veterans, however, says it plans to vigorously fight any effort to remove the Confederate flag from the memorial.
The group says it was horrified at last week’s shooting of nine black churchgoers in Charleston, allegedly by a white man who was photographed several times holding the Confederate flag and with other symbols of white supremacy.
In a statement, the group says there is “absolutely no link” between the massacre and the banner.
Leland Summers, South Carolina commander of the group, says the group is about heritage and history, not hate. He offered condolences to the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, and says now is not the time to make political points.
Summers said the Sons of Confederate Veterans have 30,000 members nationwide that will fight any attempt to move the flag.