CAMDEN, De. - School may be out of session at Caesar Rodney High School, but students are still coming to the high school.
Not for class, but to protest.
A small group of students gathered outside the high school Monday, calling for the name to be changed from Caesar Rodney High School to Harriet Tubman High School.
"The state of Delaware is known for the Underground Railroad and all those monuments for Harriet Tubman so I think it should be Harriet Tubman High School instead of someone who was a slave owner," said Sanaa Watts, a student at the school. In 1769, Rodney was speaker of the Delaware General Assembly, and tried to prohibit the importation of slaves. That measure failed.
An alum out protesting today said it's not enough. "The fact that Caesar Rodney owned slaves, even if he let them go, it doesn't matter. He owned people. He owned some of our ancestors. And that's not right. And we should no longer be forced to learn under the shadow, run, play sports, or be in any academics under a slave owner. He does not represent us. He does not represent the black community. He represents the worst of humanity," explained Sheka Price. We reached out to the school district, who declined to comment. Just across the way, at Caesar Rodney Plaza, one shopper we spoke to said while it's their right to protest, he does not support the students message. "If we change the name of Caesar Rodney School District or the school, then that means we agree in changing Mount Rushmore or knocking down all these monuments. I mean most of our Founding Fathers were slave owners. Not most of them but some. So that mean Mount Rushmore are we going to tear down Washington and Jefferson? I don't agree with that," said Giovanny Mesa of Dover. Students tell us they plan to be out here as long as it takes until they feel that the administration is hearing their voice.
