NJ High School Sheds Woodrow Wilson’s Name; Critics Claim Legacy of Racism

By Hellen Zaboulani

A school district in New Jersey is dropping the name Woodrow Wilson from its high school, distancing itself from the 28th U.S. president and what critics say was a legacy of racism.

As reported by the NY Post, the 90-year-old school in the Camden school district will be renamed, following a vote which took place more than a year ago. In 2019, a Change.org campaign was initiated by critics who suggested the name change. The movement gained momentum last summer, spurred by the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police in 2020, which led to worldwide protests and unrest.

For the past year, a 100-member renaming committee made up of parents, activists and school officials have been working to choose a new name for the school. Names being considered included US Rep. John Lewis, the late civil rights activist, and former President Barack Obama, among others, as per NJ.com. The members are also contemplating keeping the name simple, such as Camden East High School, without taking on any person’s name. The whole renaming process was put on pause however, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Now, since things have thankfully settled back down, the district decided at its board of education meeting at the end of October, that a new 10-person committee will be formed, restarting the renaming endeavor all over again.

“We are proud that our schools represent places of diversity and inclusion, and we plan to increase our efforts to reshape the identity of this venerable and cherished school,” the school said in a statement. “We plan to collaboratively work with current Wilson students, parents, alumni, and community leaders on an inclusive process to rename the school.“

Wilson, the Democratic U.S. president from 1913 to 1921, and a former NJ governor, has had his legacy marred in recent years by activists who say he backed racist policies. In June 2020, similarly at Princeton University, the board of trustees voted to shed Wilson’s name from its School of Public and International Affairs. “Wilson’s racism was significant and consequential even by the standards of his own time. He segregated the federal civil service after it had been racially integrated for decades, thereby taking America backward in its pursuit of justice,” Princeton University President Christopher L. Eisgruber wrote in a statement. “He not only acquiesced in but added to the persistent practice of racism in this country, a practice that continues to do harm today.”