Jefferson Davis school to be renamed after Obama

A public school in Mississippi named after Jefferson Davis is being renamed to honor former President Obama.

The school stakeholders voted earlier this month at the Jackson Public Schools Board of Trustees meeting to rename the school Barack Obama Magnet IB, The Clarion-Ledger reported.

{mosads}Ninety-eight percent of the students who attend the Davis Magnet school are black, according to the publication.

“Jefferson Davis, although infamous in his own right, would probably not be too happy about a diverse school promoting the education of the very individuals he fought to keep enslaved being named after him,” Davis Magnet IB PTA President Janelle Jefferson said.

The name change is meant “to reflect a person who fully represents the ideals and public stances consistent with what we want our children to believe about themselves.”

“I wholeheartedly agree with the name,” Board President Camille Simms said.

The name change will take effect during the 2018-19 school year, according to the publication.

The name change comes amid a debate over the removal of Confederate statues in various cities across the country. Some cities have decided to take down Confederate statues in their towns.

The issue was at the center of protests that took place earlier this year in Charlottesville, Va.