Dixie Ping
Posted on 08/06/2003 5:11:12 AM PDT by aomagrat
JOHNSTON, S.C. - Strom Thurmond High School will keep its Rebel nickname, but the Edgefield County School Board has voted to get rid of the mascot that looks like an old Southern aristocrat.
Tuesday night's vote on the compromise left both sides of the argument saying they weren't satisfied.
The school board initially voted 4-3 in June to get rid of the Rebel name and mascot. But a petition drive, phone calls and the threat of a lawsuit made the board decide to reconsider the matter.
Tuesday's compromise passed 6-1 and will go into effect next school year.
The decision shows Edgefield County "can get along," school board chairman Brad Covar said.
"We knew this has been a sensitive issue, but I think this is a compromise on all parts that's good for our county, good for our community and, most of all, good for our kids."
About 50 people attended the meeting, and most nodded in agreement after the vote. But few said they were happy.
Some blacks said the Rebel name and mascot, which looks similar to the mascot used at Ole Miss, were offensive symbolism harkening back to an era of repression of blacks in the South.
"I think the whole thing should have been changed," said Moses Johnson, who attended Strom Thurmond High from 1979 to 1982. "If you're going to compromise, you need something that's going to fit everybody. This is just one step."
Nora Korrek, a parent and former Strom Thurmond High cheerleader who organized a petition to save the school name and mascot, said that although she was pleased the Rebel nickname was preserved, her group might still consider taking legal action.
"They placated who they could, but I do feel like it's not going to stop here," Korrek said.
But some people think the entire controversy is a little silly.
"We need to be focusing on more important issues, not just a little symbol," said recent Strom Thurmond High graduate Jesse Bussey.
"The symbol to me is just a little Kentucky Fried Chicken man," he said.
He's next.
Dixie Ping
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