That’s what people, such as 49-year-old David Boyle of Long Beach, are saying about Robert E. Lee, a confederate commander who supported slavery. Boyle is among the many Long Beach community members who voiced their opinion about the general at a recent board meeting.
Lee also happens to be the namesake of a local elementary school, and much like slavery, that too will soon be abolished if a committee agrees to a change in response to those against the naming of the institution.
Talks about renaming Robert E. Lee Elementary School are to be discussed later in the fall, as Long Beach Unified School District (LBUSD) Superintendent Christopher Steinhauser is organizing a school committee to review school names, board policies and if the name will and can be changed at all.
In a July 20 LBUSD board meeting, Steinhauser said the committee would discuss the matter over the next several weeks, and that its recommendations will come in a meeting at some point in the fall and will illustrate the proper procedures and possibilities available when it comes to renaming the school.
Chris Eftychiou, director of public information for the LBUSD, said in an interview with the Signal Tribune that the school committee will examine different aspects of the situation, such as the potential cost involved with renaming Robert E. Lee Elementary, or if similar ap- proaches should be taken with any other schools in the district.
[aesop_image imgwidth=”400px” img=”http://www.signaltribunenewspaper.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/School-name-change-2.jpg” credit=”Wikipedia.org” align=”right” lightbox=”on” caption=”Robert E. Lee was commander of the Confederate Army of North Virginia during the American Civil War and supported slavery.” captionposition=”right”] “The committee, which will include community members, employees and others, will meet to review school-board policies regarding the naming of new schools and the renaming of existing schools,” he said. “The committee eventually will make recommendations to the school board regarding any school names that should be changed, if any.”
The name of Robert E. Lee Elementary, 1620 Temple Ave., became the subject of controversy in the Long Beach community after the Charleston church shooting in June, according to media reports.
Reports from various news outlets, such as CNN, reported that the shooting, in which nine black individuals were killed in South Carolina, was believed to have stemmed from a hate crime and the shooter’s support of the confederacy, the affiliation that Lee fought for.
An online petition in response to the shooting opened shortly thereafter, urging the LBUSD to change the name of Robert E. Elementary.
Boyle, among the many supporters at the July 20 meeting, discussed the matter with the LA Times and said that Lee’s time of being affiliated with the school is over.
“He was a great general, but his cause was the wrong cause,” Boyle said. “His time is done.”
He also proposed possibly naming the school Harper Lee Elementary, an homage to the author of the famous novel To Kill A Mockingbird. However, name alternatives for Robert E. Lee Elementary will be included in the school committee’s recommendations in the fall, according to Eftychiou.
Visit change.org to find the online petition.
