COLUMBIA, S.C. – USA TODAY -The Confederate battle flag – a powerful symbol of slavery and the Old South that has roiled emotions in South Carolina for decades – was removed from the Statehouse grounds Friday in a brief ceremony observed by thousands kept at a distance behind metal barriers.
With little fanfare, a seven-man South Carolina Highway Patrol Honor Guard, which included two African-Americans, slowly lowered the banner from its perch alongside a Confederate memorial near the Capitol.
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