RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia lawmakers are advancing bills to remove Confederate symbols from state law and strip tax exemptions from Confederate-linked organizations, reigniting debates over how the state should address its Civil War legacy.
One piece of legislation would remove “Carry Me Back to Old Virginny” as the state song emeritus. It was picked as the state song in 1940, but moved to emeritus status in 1997.
Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria), the bill’s sponsor, said the song glorifies slavery and contains pejoratives like “massah” and “darky”…