Senate President Karen Spilka said she believes Massachusetts needs a “more inclusive” flag, throwing her support behind an effort to replace the version that features a colonist’s arm holding a sword over a Native American.

The effort to replace the state flag has seen hundreds of thousands of dollars allocated to two state commissions — one failed to come up with recommendations — and contentious arguments over whether the current version is offensive or a respected historical symbol.

Spilka, an Ashland Democrat, said all of the attempts to change the flag are an indication “that the current flag does not fully represent Massachusetts values and priorities and that there are a lot of folks that want to change it to be more inclusive and representing our values.”

“I believe we need a m

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