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Albuquerque Mayor Removes Confederate Flag From Old Town

Albuquerque Mayor Richard Berry

An early version of the Confederate flag that had flown above Old Town Albuquerque for decades has been taken down.

Albuquerque Mayor Richard Berry decided to remove the flag Monday after meeting last week with black leaders.

Berry says the city still will mark its role in the Civil War by keeping replica cannons and plaques that accurately describe the "Skirmish of Albuquerque" when Confederate and Union soldiers exchanged artillery fire.

Debate over the Confederate flag intensified this summer after a white gunman who had posed with Confederate flags killed nine black church members in South Carolina.

The version of the Confederate flag flown in Old Town was known as the "Stars and Bars" with seven stars, a blue background and red and white stripes.

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Information from: Albuquerque Journal, http://www.abqjournal.com

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