Bill removing Robert E. Lee from King holiday amended

LITTLE ROCK — A proposal to end Arkansas' practice of honoring Robert E. Lee on the same day as civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. is being changed to set aside another day to commemorate the Confederate general.

Republican Rep. Nate Bell of Mena on Tuesday amended his proposal to remove Lee from the holiday honoring King's birthday. Arkansas is one of three states to jointly celebrate King and Lee on the third Monday in January.

The amendment would declare Nov. 30 as "Patrick Cleburne - Robert E. Lee Southern Heritage Day," a state memorial day but not a legal holiday. It would also repeal a state law declaring June 3 as a state memorial day in honor of former Confederacy President Jefferson Davis' birthday.

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