Walmart is announcing the removal of Mississippi’s flag, which has a Confederate emblem, from all the stores in the state.
The decision came on Tuesday amid the national effort to move the country in a direction that reflects racial equality and measurable, unbiased accountability.
In a statement released to CNN Business, Walmart revealed the corporation’s stakeholders are engaged in discussions about the flag’s emblem.
The Mississippi state flag design includes an “X” symbol replicating the Confederate flag which glorified the unionized initiative to uphold the institution of slavery.
But following the death of George Floyd roughly a month ago, renewed calls for racial equality have led to state and local officials being inundated with protests and calls for all Confederate remnants to be removed and denounced.
“We know the design of the Mississippi state flag is being discussed by various stakeholders,” Walmart told CNN Business the statement. “While the issue continues to be discussed, we’ve made the decision to remove the Mississippi state flag from display in its current form from our stores.”
Walmart’s decision will prohibit the display of the Mississippi state flag inside and outside of all the company’s locations — which had 85 stores in January — within the state.
The latest announcement comes five years after Walmart banned the sale of Confederate flag merchandise in its stores. The company noted that the new decision aligns with its sales ban on the Confederate flag.
Walmart said:
“We believe it’s the right thing to do, and is consistent with Walmart’s position to not sell merchandise with the Confederate flag from stores and online sites, as part of our commitment to provide a welcoming and inclusive experience for all of our customers in the communities we serve.”
As of Tuesday evening, Walmart still had Confederate paraphernalia for sale on its website. However, the company’s spokesperson Lorenzo Lopez has confirmed the product listing would be removed.
