quantico

Ahead of the NAACP Image Awards, "Quantico" actress Aunjanue Ellis approached her show's costume designer with an unusual request.

Ellis wanted to find a way to send a message to the state of Mississippi, where she was born and raised. So she turned to "Quantico" costume designer Sami Rattner for help.

The result? A beautiful white dress with the words "Take it down Mississippi" written across the front, accompanied by a red handprint.

Ellis at the 47th NAACP Image Awards on Feb. 5, 2016. Photo by Imeh Akpanudosen/Getty Images for NAACP Image Awards.

Take what down? Her message references Mississippi's state flag, which includes blatant Confederate imagery.

In June, Ellis penned an opinion piece for Time, saying she would no longer act in the state until it takes the flag down. And she asked other Mississippi-affiliated actors, authors, and artists to do the same.

She's not boycotting because she hates the state, but rather what the state's flag represents. She's asking that people take a long look at whether that imagery (and all that comes with it) is worth keeping.

"Mississippi is my home," she wrote. "Everything I love the most in this world was born here, or I discovered here. ... The sum total of this state is not that flag."

The Mississippi state flag. Photo by Bill Colgin/Getty Images.

Back in 2001, the people of Mississippi voted on whether to replace the Confederate symbol.

The new flag would have replaced the Confederate battle symbol with 20 stars on a field of blue, representing Mississippi being the 20th state. Sadly, the referendum to change the flag failed by a wide margin, leavingMississippi as the only state still including the Confederate battle symbol on its state flag.

Photo by Getty Images.

Will the state ditch the flag? Hopefully. Until then, we can all expect Aunjanue Ellis to continue speaking out.

Ellis at "The Birth of a Nation" premiere during the 2016 Sundance Film Festival. Photo by Nicholas Hunt/Getty Images for Sundance Film Festival.