The state of Mississippi is flying a new flag. In November, voters approved a design in which a white magnolia—the state flower—stands out against a red, yellow, and blue backdrop. The flag has 20 stars, because Mississippi was the 20th state to join the union, along with an additional star at the top to represent Choctaw Native Americans in the state. The new flag replaces a design from 1894, which featured a Confederate battle emblem and was retired in June after the killing of George Floyd, a Black man, in police custody sparked a national conversation about racial justice. Mississippi was the last state in the nation to still feature the Confederate emblem on its flag, and many had long called for its removal. It appears residents are now ready for a change, with about 70 percent of voters approving the magnolia design. “The whole goal of this,” says Sue Anna Joe, one of the designers, “was to help the people find a flag they can be proud of and a flag that they can look at and say, ‘Yes, that represents me.’ ”