School named after Confederate general is now rebranded for John Lewis

A US state’s largest school system is removing the name of Confederate General Robert E. Lee from one of its high schools in favour of the late US Representative John Lewis.

The Fairfax County School Board in Virginia approved the change during a meeting.

A news release posted on the school district’s website says the new name will be effective for the 2020-21 school year.

The board had already voted unanimously last month to remove Lee’s name.

It adopted John R. Lewis as the new name one day after numerous people spoke in favour of the change at a public hearing.

Other names under consideration included Barack Obama, Cesar Chavez, Mildred Loving, Central Springfield and Legacy.

The change comes nearly three years after the school system removed the name of Confederate Gen. J.E.B. Stuart from another high school, renaming it Justice High.

School boards throughout the Virginia and across the South have been removing Confederate names from schools in the wake of protests over racial injustice.

Mr Lewis, a civil rights leader who represented a metro Atlanta district in Congress, died last week.

His name was under consideration even before his death.

Meanwhile, a mostly white high school in northern Mississippi is retiring Confederates as the name of its sports teams.

Caledonia has used the mascot since 1957, and it is often abbreviated to Feds.

The Lowndes County school board voted to drop the name after local residents expressed concerns about the image it portrays.

The Confederates were the losing side in the American Civil War which was prompted by pro-slavery states’ attempts to secede from the Union which quelled the rebellion.