For over 15 years, the Confederate flag flying at the South Carolina Statehouse didn’t just stir emotions — it became an economic roadblock for a state hampered by one of the highest jobless rates in the country.

Prominent organizations such as the NAACP and the NCAA instituted boycotts in response to the flag’s prominent display on government grounds.

But on Friday, with the rebel banner’s removal from the Capitol for the first time since the civil rights movement, state and business leaders have a message to those who may have deliberately spurned South Carolina: Come back.

“As employers continue to work to recruit talented and diverse employees in South Carolina, removing the Confederate flag from the Statehouse grounds will be good for business growth and job creation,” said Ted Pitts, president and CEO of the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce.