What would Marshawn say? Portland schools drop “Lynch” family name
A school district in Portland is dropping “Lynch” from the names of three schools to ease concerns and complaints about the word’s violent connotations.
Centennial School District in southeast Portland will change the names of Lynch Meadows, Lynch Wood and Lynch View elementary schools before the new school year starts.
It the latest move in a national trend to change racially offensive names of buildings, sports teams and landmarks, the Oregonian reports.
The Oregon schools got their Lynch names from the Lynch family, which donated the land to build one of them more than 100 years ago.
Centennial Superintendent Paul Coakley told reporter Janaki Chadhasays while there is no connection between the Lynch family and the often racially motivated, murderous practice associated with the word, it’s still been, “a disruption for some students.
“There were an increasing amount of questions and some complaints from families of color around the name,” Coakley said.
The school board plans to officially drop use of “Lynch” in written and oral references at their next meeting on August 9.
The Oregon rename follows several recent renaming attempts.
Some of those occur after unsavory pasts are revealed about historical figures. Others are changed because the words are considered derogatory.
But a family name that also doubles as a troubling word has complications.
What if former Seahawks and current Oakland Raiders running back Marshawn Lynch wants to fund a school? Or if Merrill Lynch donates a business college?
This is not the first time an attempt has been made to erase Lynch from a public space.
In 2015, students at Lebanon Valley College in Annville, Pennsylvania demanded the renaming of Lynch Memorial Hall. It was named after a former college president who guided the school through the Great Depression.
The students were unsuccessful.
Craig Sailor: 253-597-8541, @crsailor
This story was originally published July 22, 2017 at 4:05 PM with the headline "What would Marshawn say? Portland schools drop “Lynch” family name."