SAN ANGELO, Texas — Robert E. Lee Middle School has stood on Sherwood Way in San Angelo for more than 70 years. However, the killing of George Floyd by a police officer in Minneapolis has sparked protests and movements across the country to change the names of buildings and institutions that are associated with slavery.
Jessie Ramón, a San Angelo resident and father of two, said that's what led him to create his own petition to change the name of Robert E. Lee Middle School. So far, it has gained more than 10,000 signatures.
“It’s just a slap in the face to not just children of color but the parents as well. Even with the small population of African American kids that attend this school, it’s extremely disrespectful to ask them to be associated and show school pride, knowing that this man was responsible for a large part of the slaves, their ancestors and the oppression," said Ramón.
Ramón, who has a daughter starting school at Robert E. Lee next year, said some people in favor of keeping the name have accused him of wanting to erase history. He said that is not his goal.
"It's not an attempt to rewrite history or erase history. My mother, grandmother, and I can all tell you what happened in World War II, but we don’t have to visit or attend schools named after Hitler and his advisors in order to retain and maintain that history. I think that the name, statues, monuments, flags, have a place in history, but those are better located and learned about inside the building," he said.
Billie Mungia, another San Angelo resident and mother of a daughter who attended Lee Middle, started an opposing petition to keep the name of Robert E. Lee Middle School. She said the confederate soldier the school is named after wasn't the monster that others portray him to be.
"Whenever I did the research, I found out he is nothing like what everybody's saying. He only fought on the side of the confederacy because his home state was Virginia, and when they decided to recede, he reluctantly quit the union and went to the confederacy. He did send a letter to his wife in which he stated that he believed that slavery was a moral and political evil," Mungia said.
San Angelo Independent School District released a statement saying their board of trustees has initiated a formal and thorough process. They said they will release a timeline in the near future, that will include community forums, feedback sessions, and surveys to gather community input.