Williamson County Voted To Remove Confederate Flag From Seal A Year Ago. They’re Still Awaiting A Decision From The State.

It’s been a year since Williamson County commissioners voted to remove the Confederate flag from their county seal.

They convened a task force, which wrote that the presence of the battle flag could have a negative impact on tourism, and that removing it would be good for business and in the public interest. That led the commission to vote to begin the formal process of asking the state for permission to make the change.

Yet the decision about its fate is still months away.

More: Read Williamson County’s petition to remove the Confederate flag from its official seal

The Tennessee Historical Commission planned to vote on the seal this October. But the Sons Of Confederate Veterans intervened. They requested a continuance in the case, which was granted. Now the final hearing won’t take place until next year.

The group, which is headquartered in Maury County, argues that Williamson County has not sufficiently proven that the seal has had any negative impact.

“It is interesting to note that the Task Force actually admits that Williamson County is seen as a leader in the state due to economic growth,” the Sons of Confederate Veterans petition to intervene reads. “This economic growth all occurred while the Williamson County Seal was bearing the Confederate Battle Flag. Many industries and employers have moved into Williamson County and the ‘Seal’ has not prevented this record economic growth.”

Courtesy Williamson County

The official seal of Williamson County includes a Confederate flag and cannon in the upper left quadrant.

But the county task force report does site examples where Confederate iconography resulted in missed business opportunities in states like Mississippi.

“In working to create the kind of community where a talented workforce wants to live and work, it is important to ensure that anything that suggests a community is not welcoming or inclusive is addressed,” the task force report reads.

Advocates for altering the seal worry the delay could be a sign of even more obstacles ahead.

Only four petitions have made it through the process laid out in a state law called the Heritage Protection Act. That includes a bust of Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest relocated from the Tennessee State Capitol this summer.