A bill that would remove the designation for the Confederacy from a star on the state flag was tabled Wednesday by a legislative committee, but the governor says the state should do the right thing and approve it.
Rep. Richard Womack, R-Arkadelphia, offered no explanation for why he asked the House State Agencies and Governmental Affairs Committee to put House Bill 1487 on hold, but said in an interview afterward that there aren't enough votes to pass the measure. He said it's unfair to keep rehashing it when dozens of people keep "driving back and forth" to the Capitol to be available to speak on the bill in case it comes up in committee.
"It's not dead," Womack said. "If it gets the votes, I'll take it off the table and run it again."
The panel voted 8-5 to reject the bill last week. The measure needed 10 votes to get out of committee.
The star above "Arkansas" on the flag signifies that the state was a member of the Confederacy. HB1487, sponsored by Rep. Charles Blake, D-Little Rock, would remove Confederacy references in the state statute explaining the meaning of the flag's symbols and replace them with a designation for the state's native tribes.
[RELATED: Complete Democrat-Gazette coverage of the Arkansas Legislature]
When contacted by a reporter, Blake said he was upset that the bill was tabled and that the action "shows the lack of courage from some of our members."
"It's discouraging that some of our members would go through all the means possible to not have conversations about difficult topics. There's nothing that's going to deter me," Blake said. "I have been adamant about saying that this is a conversation that needs to happen. I'm not going to stop. Obstacles won't stop me."
Blake said he has other options like filing a new bill himself or having another legislator file an identical one.
Gov. Asa Hutchinson reiterated his stance in an interview Wednesday that removing the link to the Confederacy on the state flag is the right thing to do.
"No governor wants to have any issue as divisive [as this], but I just think you have to put it in terms of both history and where we are as society and what's in the best interest of our state as a whole," Hutchinson said.
He added that part of the controversy is "people fear that you're trying to deny history, and that's just not the case." Hutchinson noted that his great-grandfather was a colonel in the Confederate States of America and that his family fought for the South.
"I don't deny that history, wouldn't want to, and would like to learn [from it]. But when you look at what we want to be known for and our flag, the flag demonstrates to all of the nations, to all this country, it's important," Hutchinson said. "So how do we want to represent Arkansas? How do we want to showcase our state? And do we want to do it in a way that's not simply a recognition of history, but it's something that's an affront to a portion of our population, and it's understandably so."
John Berrey, chairman of the Quapaw Nation, said in a statement that the tribe "greatly appreciates" Hutchinson's support for the bill.
"The name Arkansas derives from the word for 'Quapaw' in our own native language -- O-Gah-Pah -- which translates to 'the downstream people.' We welcomed the first European 'white' men, the French and Spanish, when they came to our homeland at Arkansas Post in the 1700s, well before statehood. We are a people of diversity and inclusion," Berrey said.
"So our friend Gov. Hutchinson's position supporting the proposed change in the symbolism on the flag, is strongly felt, and enthusiastically welcomed."
A Section on 03/07/2019