(Host) Students at Brattleboro Union High School are continuing a discussion of their controversial mascot. VPR’s Susan Keese has more.
(Keese) A commentary earlier this month by a local diversity activist has prompted a flood of letters to the Brattleboro Reformer and stirred community-wide debate. The author of the piece claimed the high school’s logo, an image of a confederate colonel, is a symbol of slavery and should be retired. Students held a forum on the issue earlier this week. Options they discussed ranged from a district-wide vote to letting the students decide the mascot’s fate.
In a preliminary student council vote on the logo on Wednesday, seven delegates voted to keep the logo as it is. Ten said they favored updating the Colonel image to something less offensive. High School Principal James Day says he hopes eventually that students and faculty will present the school board with a consensus. He says the forums will continue until everyone has had a chance to weigh the information and consider differing perspectives on the issue.
For Vermont Public Radio, I’m Susan Keese.