When the war against the statues first boiled over, President Trump openly wondered whether it would go beyond figures of the Confederacy to Founding Fathers such as George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. While the president’s speculation was met with eye-rolling, the jihad to remove history has not only included slave-holding founding fathers but figures such as Joan of Arc and Christopher Columbus.
The war against the statues has spread to school names. The Dallas Independent School District has already slated four schools named after Confederate generals for renaming.
The DISD has listed 20 schools for further research for renaming. The names involved are remarkable.
Founding fathers on the chopping block
Three schools named after founding fathers are being considered for renaming. They include Thomas Jefferson High School, James Madison High School, and Benjamin Franklin Middle School. Jefferson, who wrote the Declaration of Independence, and Madison, who helped to write the Constitution, were also slave owners. Franklin owned slaves as well and participated in the slave trade when he was a young man. In his later years, he freed his slaves and became a campaigner for abolition, having founded the first anti-slavery society in North America.
Heroes of the Texas Revolution are being considered as well
James Bowie Elementary School, William Travis Elementary/Middle School, and Sam Houston Elementary School are also on DISD’s List Of Schools that may draw a name change. All three men owned slaves. However, Bowie and Travis died at the Alamo fighting for Texas independence.
Houston led the Texas Army to victory at the Battle of San Jacinto. As governor of Texas in 1861, Houston opposed the secession of Texas from the Union.
Reaction seems to be overwhelmingly negative
If the comments on the Facebook page of Dustin Marshall, a member of the Dallas School Board, is any indication, the reaction by residents of Dallas to the proposed name changes is overwhelmingly negative.
Marshall recently published an op-ed in the Dallas Morning News defending the drive to take down Confederate statues and rename schools named after Confederate generals. He was dismissive of the idea that the war against the statues would spread to people like Jefferson, yet Jefferson and other founding fathers, not to mention revered figures from the Texas Revolution, are on a list of school names being considered for changes. Marshall will likely be called upon to explain this dichotomy.
Marshall and others who are prepared to rewrite history may also be called on to explain how the effort is going to improve the education prospects of Dallas school children. Apparently, since names on buildings seem to be the overwhelming issue, Dallas schools must be first rate with no problems.
