The selling or displaying of the Confederate flag has been banned throughout the state of New York under a new law signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
Per NBC News, the Confederate flag - along with swastikas and other "symbols of hate" - will no longer be permitted to be sold or displayed on state grounds under the bill, which went into effect immediately on Tuesday (December 15).
During the bill-signing, Governor Andrew Cuomo stated:
"This country faces a pervasive, growing attitude of intolerance and hate - what I have referred to in the body politic as an American cancer."
Cuomo added: "The horrific rash of anti-Semitic, anti-African American, anti-Hispanic and anti-LGBTQ behavior spreading across the United States is repugnant to our values as New Yorkers and Americans, and a new generation now bears witness to a rising tide of discrimination, hatred, and violence that threatens generations of progress.
"By limiting the display and sale of the Confederate flag, Nazi swastika and other symbols of hatred from being displayed or sold on state property, including the state fairgrounds, this bill will help safeguard New Yorkers from the fear-instilling effects of these abhorrent symbols."
As reported by CNN, the bill prohibits the "selling or displaying of symbols of hate or any similar image, or tangible personal property, inscribed with such an image" on public property.
It continues: "The term 'symbols of hate' shall include, but not be limited to, symbols of White supremacy, neo-Nazi ideology, or the battle flag of the Confederacy."
NBC News adds that the displaying of the flag will be permitted within books, museum services or materials used for educational or historical purposes.
Describing the flag as a "potent symbol of slavery and white supremacy," the Anti-Defamation League recognizes the flag as a hate symbol, and this year, there have been multiple instances of the flag being banned.
Back in June, the United States Marine Corps (USMC) banned displays of the Confederate Flag at its military installations - including everything from bumper stickers to coffee mugs.
In addition, NASCAR also banned the Confederate flag from its races and properties back in the summer, The Guardian reports.
However, not everybody agrees with the banning, as attorney Floyd Abrams says that the new law conflicts with the right to free speech.
Per NBC, Abrams said: "The First Amendment generally protects the expression of even hateful speech, and a statute banning the sale of materials expressing those views on state-owned land is highly likely to be held unconstitutional."
