Petition to Change Names of Stuart and Lee HS

[Anonymous]

Obviously there weren't two Marshall Highs before so it wasn't an issue. I predict the kids will say they either go to GCM or Thurgood. It doesn't seem like a big deal, and worth it if we can dispense with the Confederate names.

You are not concerned at all about the expense?

[Anonymous]

Can we just rename them after people with the same last name? I like the idea of Patrick Stewart (I know that's different) high school, complete with those little star trek communicator things as the logo. Annandale uses the Atom, why not have football helmets with this on the side?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Obviously there weren't two Marshall Highs before so it wasn't an issue. I predict the kids will say they either go to GCM or Thurgood. It doesn't seem like a big deal, and worth it if we can dispense with the Confederate names.

You are not concerned at all about the expense?

The schools have some wealthy alumni, and minority students should not attend schools named after generals who fought to preserve slavery and white supremacy. FCPS was going to call these schools Franconia HS and Munson Hill HS until they decided Lee and Stuart were better names to demonstrate their resistance to integration. The names are anachronisms and need to change.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Obviously there weren't two Marshall Highs before so it wasn't an issue. I predict the kids will say they either go to GCM or Thurgood. It doesn't seem like a big deal, and worth it if we can dispense with the Confederate names.

You are not concerned at all about the expense?

The schools have some wealthy alumni, and minority students should not attend schools named after generals who fought to preserve slavery and white supremacy. FCPS was going to call these schools Franconia HS and Munson Hill HS until they decided Lee and Stuart were better names to demonstrate their resistance to integration. The names are anachronisms and need to change.

You want to hand over the bill to the alumni? You're crazy.

[Anonymous]

FCPS was going to call these schools Franconia HS and Munson Hill HS until they decided Lee and Stuart were better names to demonstrate their resistance to integration.

Is there hard proof that this was the reason for the change to the Lee and Stuart names? Are there minutes from the meetings that tell us this was the reason? Is it possible that they were trying to keep the white students from fleeing the schools? Do we know if there were threats to close all the public schools (like what happened in Prince Edward County)? How do we know what the actual intentions were? It may have been (most likely) a much more complicated scenario than we know. Maybe keeping peace meant that they had to do something like name these schools the way they did. Maybe this olive branch kept Fairfax County from having the violence that occurred in other places (but not here). We probably do not know the complete story, but the complete story may have a historical lesson for everyone.

[Anonymous]

This isn't ancient history. People who were alive and went to these schools then are still alive and I've heard them talk about "those old days". This did happen. It's hard to believe in some ways, but life was so different just 20 years ago in fcps.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

FCPS was going to call these schools Franconia HS and Munson Hill HS until they decided Lee and Stuart were better names to demonstrate their resistance to integration.

Is there hard proof that this was the reason for the change to the Lee and Stuart names? Are there minutes from the meetings that tell us this was the reason? Is it possible that they were trying to keep the white students from fleeing the schools? Do we know if there were threats to close all the public schools (like what happened in Prince Edward County)? How do we know what the actual intentions were? It may have been (most likely) a much more complicated scenario than we know. Maybe keeping peace meant that they had to do something like name these schools the way they did. Maybe this olive branch kept Fairfax County from having the violence that occurred in other places (but not here). We probably do not know the complete story, but the complete story may have a historical lesson for everyone.

So are you saying the names shouldn't change if the reason for the name choice was to appease racist white parents who didn't want their kids going to school with black kids Or to appease racists who threatened violence? Yes, things were probably complicated at the time, but it makes no sense to not make the change now because appeasing the anti-integration movement was deemed the best course of action at the time.

[Anonymous]

Once more, which programs are you going to sacrifice in order to pay for the name change?

[Anonymous]

Back in 2005 there was serious talk taking place to change Stuart's name to Peace Valley High (the street it is on I believe), due its namesake. So, this isn't an entirely new idea. Not sure why they didn't change it then.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

FCPS was going to call these schools Franconia HS and Munson Hill HS until they decided Lee and Stuart were better names to demonstrate their resistance to integration.

Is there hard proof that this was the reason for the change to the Lee and Stuart names? Are there minutes from the meetings that tell us this was the reason? Is it possible that they were trying to keep the white students from fleeing the schools? Do we know if there were threats to close all the public schools (like what happened in Prince Edward County)? How do we know what the actual intentions were? It may have been (most likely) a much more complicated scenario than we know. Maybe keeping peace meant that they had to do something like name these schools the way they did. Maybe this olive branch kept Fairfax County from having the violence that occurred in other places (but not here). We probably do not know the complete story, but the complete story may have a historical lesson for everyone.

Lots of speculation to try and make this sound more complicated than it is. It's patently obvious the names were changed when they were in the late 1950s to what they are to demonstrate resistance to integration and make black students feel uncomfortable in a white school. It wouldn't make it any better if Fairfax officials did it to suck up to bigger racists in Richmond controlling state money. Let's change the names now and be done with it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is this mission to erase all memories of the civil war? It happened. Justice won, and we all learned from it.

Should we also petition that they shut down the Holocaust museum because we want to forget that too?

"Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it."
George Santayana

+ 1 million

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Obviously there weren't two Marshall Highs before so it wasn't an issue. I predict the kids will say they either go to GCM or Thurgood. It doesn't seem like a big deal, and worth it if we can dispense with the Confederate names.

You are not concerned at all about the expense?

The schools have some wealthy alumni, and minority students should not attend schools named after generals who fought to preserve slavery and white supremacy. FCPS was going to call these schools Franconia HS and Munson Hill HS until they decided Lee and Stuart were better names to demonstrate their resistance to integration. The names are anachronisms and need to change.

You want to hand over the bill to the alumni? You're crazy.

You must not be on the receiving end of emails asking parents and alumni to consider donations to turf fields and scholarship funds at these schools. Alumni surely can defray some of these costs as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What is this mission to erase all memories of the civil war? It happened. Justice won, and we all learned from it.

Should we also petition that they shut down the Holocaust museum because we want to forget that too?

"Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it."
George Santayana

+ 1 million

You are a total moron. The correct analogy isn't to closing the Holocaust Museum, but to renaming a school that had been named after Hitler.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Back in 2005 there was serious talk taking place to change Stuart's name to Peace Valley High (the street it is on I believe), due its namesake. So, this isn't an entirely new idea. Not sure why they didn't change it then.

More student and community support now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Once more, which programs are you going to sacrifice in order to pay for the name change?

What's most important to Elizabeth Schultz? That might be a good place to start.