Eagle Pass Independent School District Board to Consider Name Change for Robert E. Lee Elementary at June 23 Meeting
By: Ricardo E. Calderon, Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc., Copyright 2020
The rising civil rights movement sweeping the United States to address systemic racism within American society and history due to the death of George Floyd on May 25, 2020 by four Minneapolis, Minnesota Police Officers while under detention has reached the Eagle Pass Independent School District in Eagle Pass, Texas as local citizens have demanded that the name of Robert E. Lee Elementary, Commander General of the Confederate States Army during the Civil War, be changed due to General Lee’s promotion of slavery and racism in America.
Eagle Pass Independent School District Superintendent Samuel Mijares announced at a press conference on Thursday, June 18, 2020, that the Board of Trustees will consider the name change of Robert E. Lee Elementary at their regular Board meeting to be held on Tuesday, June 23, 2020, at 4 P.M. due to its racist connotations.
Many Eagle Passans have expressed their disapproval of the local elementary school to continue being named after the General of the Confederate States Army, Robert E. Lee, for many reasons, but principally that the Confederate States promulgated the Civil War to promote racism and slavery of African-Americans and General Lee’s treason of the United States by switching his military allegiance from the United States Army to the Confederate States Army.
The Civil War claimed the lives of over 600,000 American soldiers and citizens before the Confederate States surrendered to the United States.
Many Eagle Passans have opined that the name of Robert E. Lee Elementary should be changed, but for fear of retaliation kept their concerns private.
The Eagle Pass Business Journal published an editorial on June 13, 2020 requesting the Eagle Pass Independent School District Board of Trustees to change the name of Robert E. Lee Elementary.
In El Paso, Texas, the El Paso Independent School District Board of Trustees faced the same issue with its Robert E. Lee Elementary and approved to change the name after a 5-1 majority vote and will seek recommendations from the public for a new name at their June 16, 2020 meeting.
According to the Agenda of the Eagle Pass Independent School District Board Meeting on June 23, 2020, Agenda Item No. VIII(2) calls for an Executive Session to consult with legal counsel regarding the Board’s legal authority to select and/or change the names of District facilities and Agenda Item No. IX(2) calls in Open Session the “consideration and possible action to rename Robert E. Lee Elementary.”
The Eagle Pass Independent School District Board Meeting of Tuesday, June 23, 2020, at 4 P.M. will be held at the District’s Board Room located at 587 Madison Street in downtown Eagle Pass. Concerned and interested citizens are invited to attend and express their opinion during the Citizens’ Communication/Recognition part of the Agenda. Each citizen is allocated a maximum of three minutes during the Citizens’ Communication with a maximum of 20 minutes overall for this part of the Agenda. The Board meeting is open to the public.
