Activist who took down Confederate flag from statehouse drew on faith, civil rights awakening

As she prepared for her mission—scaling the 30-foot flagpole outside the South Carolina statehouse to bring down the Confederate flag—Bree Newsome reread the biblical story of David and Goliath.

Newsome, 30, a youth organizer with Ignite NC, a nonprofit group challenging restrictive voting laws, spoke in mid-July in Hot Springs, North Carolina, at the Wild Goose Festival, the four-day camp revival that celebrates spirituality, arts, and justice.

“I don’t even feel like it was my human strength in that moment,” Newsome said. “I’m honestly just so humbled.”