SAN ANGELO, Texas — Leave it, and change it: those are the two comments that have been flooding social media timelines for weeks, as Concho Valley residents debate on whether or not the San Angelo Independent School District should rename a middle school that has stood its ground in San Angelo for more than 70 years. The school is named after a commander of the confederate states army during the American civil war, Robert E. Lee.
In June of 2020, the debate over the school's name started heating up when San Angelo resident and father of two Jessie Ramón created a petition to change the name.
"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 slavery of their ancestors and their oppression," Ramón said.
Ramón's petition was quickly counteracted by resident and mother Billie Mangua, who created a petition to keep the name Robert E. Lee.
"Whenever I did the research, I found out that he is nothing like everybody's saying. He sent a letter to his wife in which he stated that he believed that slavery was immoral and political evil," Mangua said of Robert E. Lee.
Ramón's petition now has more than 13,000 signatures, while Mangua's opposing petition has almost 8,000 signatures.
We asked for your thoughts on the Nextdoor app, which sparked a lot of debate. After reading through more than 100 comments, it came down to 24 people saying they want the middle school to keep its name, while 8 people commented in favor of changing it.
SAISD has recently released a calendar of events regarding the possible name change, with the first virtual town hall meetings open to the public taking place on Aug. 6.