Missouri County Changes Mind: Won't Lower Flags to Mourn Traditional Marriage

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Dent County, Missouri, an area of southern Missouri with a population of about 15,000, has rescinded its prior decision to lower flags to mourn the Supreme Court's ruling on same-sex marriage, out of respect for veterans, according to Talking Points Memo.

Darrel Skiles, the presiding county commissioner, reported to Salem Newsthat the all-Republican commission would vote on Tuesday or Wednesday to do away with the decision for the sake of those serving in the military.

Skiles originally wrote in a letter that lowering the county's flag on the 26th of every month until July 2016 would be an act of protest of the Supreme Court's legalization of nationwide marriage equality. The commission's decision to reverse its original plan for flying flags below half-staff, however, does not by any means changes the general consensus of Missouri state politics.

"I had this feeling like when someone near and dear has passed away -- not the same, but similar," Skiles, a cattle rancher, told BuzzFeed.

County Commissioner, Gary Larson reported to the St.Louis Post-Dispatch that the Supreme Court descision is "just one step backward."