Racial slur painted on NC school spirit rock ahead of rivalry game with ‘Rebels’
Police are investigating after vandals painted a racial slur and their North Carolina high school’s athletic logo onto the spirit rock of a longtime rival.
It happened sometime before Lincolnton High School’s homecoming football game on Friday night, Principal Preston Clarke said in a statement, posted jointly on Facebook with West Lincoln High School Principal Nathan McLean.
“This senseless act and lack of awareness has invoked a lot of emotion throughout our school community,” Clarke said. “... The act of racism has no place in our school system, nor is it a reflection of our long standing rivalries with other high schools across the county.”
McLean said a “group of individuals” defaced the rock and “will be dealt with appropriately” after a “thorough investigation” by the schools. A report also has been filed with the Lincolnton Police Department, he said. Neither principal gave details of the contents of the vandalism. Photos circulated on social media show the West Lincoln logo along with the N word.
“Acts of racism have no place at West Lincoln High School,” McLean wrote.
West Lincoln’s mascot is the Rebels, the name of soldiers who fought for the Confederacy during the Civil War.
McLean added: “And the action of a few do not represent what the staff, students and community stand for. These types of behaviors will not be tolerated.”
Other N.C. schools have replaced names such as “Rebels” and “Indians” over the years along with names of Confederate leaders:
▪ In October, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools board renamed Zebulon B. Vance High School as Julius L. Chambers High School. In so doing, the board replaced the name of a Confederate general and N.C. governor with the name of a civil rights icon.
▪ In July 2020, the Union County Schools Board of Education voted to change the Rebels mascot and nickname at Parkwood High School. The Union County NAACP pushed for the change since 2009, calling the name a form of “intimidation and harassment,” The Charlotte Observer previously reported.
▪ Monroe High School, also in Union County, changed its mascot to the Redhawks in 1995, the Observer reported.
▪ South Stanly High in Stanly County previously changed its Rebels name to the Rebel Bulls.
▪ In 2004, West Mecklenburg High changed its nickname from Indians to Hawks.