Two public schools in Berkeley, California, will remove their names commemorating Presidents George Washington and Thomas Jefferson amid renewed and widespread calls from the Black Lives Matter movement for racial equality.
The Berkeley Unified School District approved a “Resolution in Support of Black Lives Matter” last week, following weeks of nationwide protests and riots denouncing systemic racism and police brutality sparked by the death of a black man, George Floyd, in Minneapolis police custody on Memorial Day. Both schools are named after presidents who owned slaves.
“Noting that Black Lives Matter protests have swept the nation as demonstrators demand justice in response to the killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and far too many other Black Americans to list, the Resolution In Support of Black Lives Matter includes the following action steps: Initiate a School Renaming Process for Jefferson and Washington Elementary Schools in accordance with the District’s policies,” the school board said in a statement.
The school district also announced it would launch a “Black Joy Campaign,” which will be a year-round initiative to train teachers on racial equality and collect data from the schools, the SF Gate reported.
“This is the first, but not the last, of our work around ensuring that we move from the thought of equity to excellence,” school board member Ka’Dijah Brown said.
Community members previously tried to remove Jefferson’s name from the elementary school in 2005 but did not get enough votes for the change. The BLM movement is cited as the spark that initiated the successful changes.
Last week’s vote comes as statues and memorials of controversial leaders have been toppled and defaced in recent weeks. Additionally, people in high-profile industries have faced resignations and firings over comments or actions regarding race.
In Chicago, a black principal of one of the most selective high schools in the city is facing a push from “disappointed alumni” to resign amid the nationwide protests over racial justice. Joyce Kenner has worked for Whitney M. Young Magnet High School for 25 years as its principal and previously worked for Jesse Jackson’s civil rights and political initiative, the Rainbow PUSH Coalition. She is now facing a petition signed by hundreds calling for her resignation for allegedly silencing students speaking out against injustice.
“If you are not going to speak out for your students, if you are not going to do what is best for YOUR students, please resign. Whitney Young students deserve a principal who loves and cares about their wellbeing in a world that hates them,” the petition reads.
Kenner has denied the accusations.
“You could go by your experience, and the only thing I’ve ever tried to do is get our black kids educated, so they have the opportunity to be part of this world,” Kenner said, adding that she has no plans to resign. “Nobody is going to push me out. I’m not resigning. I still have a lot of work to do for my African American students.”
