In 1972, Manor High School opened its doors to several diverse communities in Portsmouth, Va. It was named for two ethnic neighborhoods: The mostly black Cavalier Manor, and the predominantly white community known as Hodges Manor. At the time, this combination reflected the most diverse public learning environment in Portsmouth. Students, faculty, and student government at Manor were allowed to develop and implement creative traditions associated with student life and academics, producing an array of citizens who have excelled in business, the military, education, sports, and entertainment.

In 1993, the Portsmouth School Board consolidated two of its high schools, effectively erasing the legacy and proud tradition of Manor High. Against the wishes of many, and without fair representation of Manor alum, the School Board voted to change the name of Manor High School to Woodrow Wilson High.

Recently in America, the killing of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Rayshard Brooks, Ahmaud Arbery and countless others has sparked outrage and ignited a campaign for social change that is inspiring Americans to re-evaluate systemic racism, as reflected in Confederate monuments to traitorous Civil War soldiers and displayed by institutions named in honor of prominent Americans who were avowed racists. Here in Portsmouth, we believe the school board should restore the name of Manor High School, as Woodrow Wilson was a demonstrated bigot. His name should not grace any building that educates African Americans - or any other group of children.

Consider the record: As president of Princeton University, Wilson refused to allow African Americans to enroll in the college. In his first 10 months after being elected president of the United States, he fired 15 of 17 black government supervisors and replaced them with whites, insisting that black men had no business leading white women in America. Moreover, Wilson helped promote the Ku Klux Klan in 1915 by hosting a viewing of the profoundly racist film, “Birth of a Nation,” on the white house lawn. As well, he helped preserved Jim Crow segregation laws in Washington D.C. Wilson’s record on international affairs was no better. During the historical formation of the League of Nations, when Japanese representatives requested that support for racial equality be included a part of the foundational concept of the League, Wilson flat out refused to entertain the idea (Vox​ The Atlantic).

If we are genuinely to be inclusive to all students in Portsmouth, then the name of Woodrow Wilson should not be associated with a school designed to educate our children. Officials at Princeton have already led the way to change, announcing plans to remove Wilson’s name from its public policy school and one of its residential colleges (CNN). We believe the Portsmouth School Board should follow suit and send the message that Wilson’s racist values and philosophies do not align with the principles of our city’s schools. Therefore, we ask the school board to right two wrongs: Remove the name of Woodrow Wilson High School and restore the name of Manor High to its rightful place.