In August and September of 2020, the Edinburg and Rio Grande Valley community came together to decry the continued honoring of the white-supremacist, slave-holding Confederate general. Residents demanded that the school board change the racist school name of Robert E. Lee Elementary, and after a short campaign, was met with a unanimous school board decision to change the name. A process was put in place to accept name submissions for the new name. However, it has now been 4 years and the name-change process was abandoned, with inquiries as to "Why?" ignored. What has kept ECISD from removing the idolatry of a historical figure known as a symbol for racism and hatred?

After speaking with two anonymous inside sources who work with closely with the school board, it was shared that “the school board just doesn’t want to change the name” and that “it’s history, it happened, that’s how we’re teaching it.” The blatant disregard and disrespect for the democratic process established for residents to rename the school is astounding, as is their faulty logic on how to teach something like the Confederacy.

We recognize that honoring history is important, and it is essential to recognize and honor the right kind of history. The Confederacy lost the war, the Union won, and freedom for Black Americans was enshrined in our Constitution. Just how we don't have statues of Hitler to teach about The Third Reich, neither should we have commemorations of Confederate generals.

ECISD has an obligation to listen to community members and make changes that will be welcoming and inclusive for RGV residents from all ethnic backgrounds and make positive changes in the realm of historical progress.

ECISD should follow through with the process already set-in-motion, by:

1. First, acknowledging the results of the nomination process held on their website that closed September 3, 2020
2. Secondly, what they intend to do next in order to complete the democratic selection process.
3. Thirdly, given the last 4 years of inaction, they should issue an apology to students and the community for abandoning the name change.

Send an email today to the Board and Superintendent by entering your info on the right and clicking "Start Writing."