The Other Confederate Capitol Also Renames 3 Schools

A since removed confederate flag in Montgomery.

 

 Montgomery's School Board has voted to change the names of three schools that have confederate connected names, though two board members voted against it and the change hasn't actually happened so far. And one of the three--Lanier High School--is being closed instead of renamed.

Now the board in the only other Confederate Capital---Richmond, Virginia---is also ditching some confederate school names. The Richmond Times Dispatch reports:

The Richmond School Board on Monday evening voted 5-3 to rename three schools that are named for Confederates: John B. Cary Elementary, Ginter Park Elementary and Binford Middle.

The Confederates for which the schools are named “may not be as well known as some of the others, but they played just as much a heinous role in the trafficking of human beings as the others and … I feel that the namesake of a school actually does set the tone for that school,” said Richmond School Board member Stephanie Rizzi, who represents the 5th District.

“When you … attend a school that’s named after someone you have pride in, it definitely can affect how you feel about that building and whether you feel welcomed or not.”

A statue of Confederate President Jefferson Davis 

outside the Alabama State Capitol building.

  

The Montgomery School Board is being fined as much as $75k for making the changes, since they appears to be in violation of the Kay Ivey Protect Confederate Names law.

 

 An Education Week report posted yesterday includes a quote from the Montgomery Superintendent Melvin Brown:

"Alabama still has 30 schools named after Confederate leaders, even after Montgomery Public Schools decided to change its two school names. That is the third highest of any state. Texas has 82 schools named after people associated with the Confederacy, and Georgia has 61, according to an Education Week database that tracks Confederate-named schools nationwide.

Since June 2020, 53 schools have made similar name changes to schools, although there are still approximately 340 schools in 20 states named after Confederate figures."

“I’m hoping that because we were able to pay it, maybe someone else won’t have to,” Brown said about the fine. “I’m hoping they realize that funds that could help schools are paying for ... legacy oppression and non-inclusion.”