Auburn drops appeal to name high school for Harriet Tubman after contentious debate

AUBURN, NY — Auburn school officials decided not to change the name of the high school to honor Harriet Tubman, after anger and name-calling swirled around the student-led proposal.

“It became very divisive,’' School Board President Joseph Sheppard told Syracuse.com|The Post Standard. “It became a very heated debate, with people upset on both sides.”

Rhonda Overstreet-Wilson, a school board member, suggested a “pause” in considering the proposal saying that the issue “has divided our community and should be a celebration, not a fight.”

The board decided to delay any consideration of changing the high school name for an undetermined amount of time and take a more measured approach with clearly spelled out steps. Sheppard said the board also decided it needs to do a more in-depth survey of the community.

Read more: https://www.syracuse.com/schools/2021/06/auburn-drops-appeal-to-name-high-school-for-harriet-tubman-after-contentious-debate.html