NAACP chapter, students sue Virginia school district over reinstating Confederate names of schools

A Virginia county school board has been sued by the Virginia chapter of the NAACP and five students after it voted last month to reinstate the names of Confederate leaders on two schools.

The NAACP and the students argue that the school board’s move violates the plaintiffs' First and 14th Amendments rights in addition to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Equal Educational Opportunities Act.

The complaint was filed on Tuesday.

“When Black students are compelled to attend schools that glorify the leaders and ideals of the Confederacy, they are subject to a racially discriminatory educational environment, which has significant psychological, academic, and social effects,” the complaint said.

“When students are required to identify as members of student bodies or teams named to honor Confederate leaders in order to participate in school activities, they are required against their will to endorse the violent defense of slavery pursued by the Confederacy and the symbolism that these images have in the modern White supremacist movement,” it also said.