Tweets call to #FreeBree after woman removes S.C. Statehouse Confederate flag
Bree Newsome of Charlotte, N.C., removes the Confederate battle flag at a Confederate monument outside the Statehouse in Columbia, S.C.
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Twitter lit up with posts calling to #FreeBree after a black activist scaled a 30-foot pole in front of the South Carolina Statehouse and pulled down the Confederate battle flag.
Brittany Ann Newsome, who goes by "Bree," was arrested after she plucked the flag from its permanent and legally protected place on the Statehouse grounds.
Social media users flooded the internet with posts supporting her actions.
Some tweets focused on the heated debate surrounding the symbolism of the Confederate flag.
Others praised Newsome as an effective activist and called for similar nonviolent defiance.
A few even requested that the state drop the misdemeanor charges against her.
But not everyone was on team Bree. Critics said she had disrespected a historic symbol and broken the law.
Newsome's supporters started a campaign to raise money to cover her bail and legal fees. The Indiegogo crowdfunding site raised nearly $70,000 in seven hours.
Newsome posted $300 bond and was released in the midafternoon.
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