Nation & World News
South Carolina's Confederate flag removed from capitol grounds
Maria Calef holds a sign in front of the Confederate monument outside the South Carolina State House in Columbia, July 9, 2015. After hours of emotional debate, the state House voted to remove the Confederate battle flag from the grounds of the State Capitol Thursday morning. The bill now goes to the desk of Gov. Nikki R. Haley, whose office said that she would sign the bill into law at an event at 4 p.m. on Thursday at the State House. (Stephen B. Morton/The New York Times)
- Judge orders kids to juvenile center for refusing to see dad
- Nurse who dropped newborn won't lose her job
- Teenager finds decades-old error in science museum exhibit
- Does this McDonald's Minion toy speak profanity?
- Must-see: 3-year-old gets 'parking ticket,' strikes priceless pose in viral photo
Just hours before the Confederate flag was set to be removed this morning, South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley walked out of the statehouse, taking in the scene and preparing for the historic event.
She had signed the bill to remove the banner Thursday afternoon.
Around 10 a.m. ET, the flag had been removed, sent to a Confederate museum nearby.
Opposition to the Confederate symbol gained momentum after the killings of nine parishioners at a historic black church in Charleston.
Haley told NBC's "Today" show that she would be thinking of the victims of that shooting when the flag is removed at the ceremony Friday morning.
Authorities said that suspect Dylann Roof was racially motivated to perform the killings and was seen in photos posing with the Confederate flag as a symbol of hatred, WSOC reported.
The Confederate flag has flown on the grounds of the South Carolina Statehouse for more than 50 years.
For the latest updates, click here for WSOC's complete coverage.
