Palmetto pride: South Carolina state flag sparks debate

COLUMBIA, SC (AP) — South Carolina senators may soon take up one of the most divisive issues to hit the state in years — standardizing the design of the iconic palmetto tree and crescent state flag.

A Senate subcommittee Tuesday approved two possible designs. The Legislature has never set into law the exact way the palmetto tree and crescent should look, nor the exact shade of indigo blue for the background.

In fact, right now the South Carolina flag hoisted daily over the Statehouse looks different than the one that flies in the House and Senate chambers.

A committee of historians is coming up with the designs, scrapping their original one because the palmetto tree did not look robust.