Student research says mascot named after Green Mountain Boys, and maybe James Dean
by Guy Page
A Windham County high school/middle school board has opted to keep its controversial school mascot name – the “Rebels.”
According to a news report in the Brattleboro Reformer, Leland and Gray High School (located in the small, northern Windham County town of Townshend) will keep the name as a result of a presentation by eighth graders. The decision was made at a school board meeting Monday night. However, the door has been left open for some rebranding.
“Eighth grade students presented information on the history of the mascot,” reporter Chris Mays wrote. “They said it isn’t linked to the Confederacy in the Civil War, as suggested by the Rutland Area National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).”
The ‘Rebel’ name was reportedly criticized by the Rutland NAACP, which wrote in a letter to the state board of education: “The term “Rebel” denotes imagery of what the Native People are often referred to and an image of a confederate soldier rebelling against the north’s perspective to do away with enslaved people. If we are to condemn stereotypes and biases, we must eliminate this way of thinking of America’s past. Black lives matter, we can no longer hold onto these horrific beliefs.”
A recent state law gives the state education authorities the power to investigate and act on mascot names deemed to be racist.
Historical research showed, however, that the ‘rebels’ to whom the mascot name refers are the Green Mountain Boys, rebelling against British colonial authority, the Reformer reported.
The 1955 film Rebel Without a Cause starring James Dean may have influenced the late 1950’s decision, too, the Reformer said.