A rally in Lexington in support of flying the Confederate flag downtown attracted more than 100 people Thursday night, but that still wasn't enough to sway city council.
The local Sons of Confederate Veterans organized the rally earlier in the day, before a public hearing on the matter.
This past January, Confederate flags were planned to be put up in celebration of Lee Jackson Day Martin Luther King Jr. day in Lexington. However, city leaders only allowed the flags to fly for the week prior to MLK day.
The city received numerous complaints, which led to the proposed ordinance. It would only allow city, state and U.S. government flags to be flown from the city's public flag poles.
There are mixed opinions about the issue.
"As much as I love the south, I wouldn't live anywhere else. I don't see that as one our great accomplishments. I think it's not something the city of Lexington stands for," said Rod Smith.
On the other hand, H.K. Edgerton, who is civil rights activist and former president of the NAACP in Asheville, North Carolina thinks the flags are a part of history.
"I don't care if it's not flown the north, it should be flown in the south because it's a symbol of who we are as a people. This is our flag. It is the southland of America. It is a flag of the people of the south, red, yellow, black and white," Edgerton said.
At Thursday night's public hearing, council passed the ordinance four to one.
The leader of the local Sons of Confederate Veterans says the group plans to take legal action to get council's decision overturned.
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