Some stories won’t quit. For example: the Rebels sports mascot debate in South Burlington. After the school board voted in February to drop the name on the grounds that it had racist associations with the Confederacy, I thought the long saga had concluded.
Wrong. The vote prompted a stream of news that continued through June and has since slowed but not dried up. Still unresolved: A lawsuit brought by Rebels supporters seeking a public vote on the name change continues to wend its way through Vermont Superior Court. In mid-December, a judge denied the school district’s motion to dismiss the case, and the lawsuit appeared to be heading to trial.
Meanwhile, the school sports teams have been officially rebranded as the Wolves, and athletic programming continues under that moniker.
Off the fields, the name change triggered an intense dialogue about race in a mostly white suburban community that spilled over into criminal court.
A review of this year’s South Burlington news: A parent pleaded guilty to stalking Isaiah Hines, the student leader who led the push to retire the Rebels; one of his classmates pleaded guilty to writing racist graffiti targeting Hines on the high school football field; and a different student who pleaded guilty to threats that resulted in multiple school lockdowns was back in court last month for violating conditions.
I sat down with Hines in June to talk about the surprising developments. I’d interviewed him briefly before, on the telephone and at a rally. When I arrived at Starbucks, he was already there, drinking some big, cold, sweet coffee drink with 10 adjectives in its name. We talked about the seemingly endless developments in the Rebels saga.
He was surprised to find himself at the center of such a storm in his senior year. He never expected to become a mini celebrity in his hometown or to be targeted by racist graffiti left on the football field at his high school. His upbeat demeanor changed when we discussed that incident, which seemed to have wounded him.
Still, Hines appeared resilient and ready to move on. I had to keep reminding myself: This kid is just a teenager.
While the stories persist, Hines has forged ahead. He is now a freshman at Columbia University, and I have no trouble imagining him navigating the Big Apple.
South Burlington isn’t the only Vermont community dealing with race-related issues. This year, I also wrote about problems in the Milton school district and on college campuses including Middlebury and the University of Vermont.
Vermont’s population, though growing more diverse, is still about 95 percent white. As a result, some of my sources have suggested, the state is ill-equipped to discuss subtleties around racism, equal opportunity and fairness. Others say Vermont is a prisoner to political correctness that shuts down authentic debate and drives dissenting views underground in an unhealthy way.
As a journalist who happens to be white, I broach stories about race in a manner I hope is fair and comprehensive. Readers let me know loud and clear when they don’t think a story has met that goal. One thing is certain: The discussion is not over. I predict Vermont will continue to wrestle with racial questions in the coming year, giving all of us an opportunity to keep talking, and writing, about this important subject.
This article appears in Dec 27, 2017 – Jan 2, 2018.
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I’m sorry this brilliant and brave kid’s experience of Vermont contains unfortunate similarities to confederate flag worshippers clinging tightly to centuries of hatred and racism. How dare any minority speak out about remnants of oppression in his ‘tolerant’ and educated community.
Vermont Rebels wrapped in confederate flags have nothing to do with the racism pervasive throughout the south. After all racism is over, especially up north. Yeah, right. Nice job South Burlington, you’re really standing up for your right to be hateful douchebags and taint our state with your fervent embrace of racist artifacts.
Way to keep it classy Penelope. Nothing says tolerance like calling those who disagree with you douchebags and racists. And nothing says you dont have a good argument or arent even able to articulate one than using those epithets. Youve told us all we need to know about you. Thank you.
PENELOPE, consider this quote by William Blake. “What seems to be, is, to whom it seems to be.” In reference to your comment here, I doubt even you believe what you wrote, is.
PENELOPE, consider this quote by William Blake. “What seems to be, is, to whom it seems to be.” In the case of your comment, I doubt even you believe what you wrote, is.
Did it ever occur to the intrepid reporter that the story’s legs do not start with Feb. 1, 2017, when the board voted, without input from the electorate, as the court said was required, but to the 1970’s, 1980’s, and 1990’s, when the district reportedly took measures to ensure that Confederate symbols were not used in connection with the name and then banned those symbols altogether, a ban which worked for 25 years and counting? Or maybe to 2015, when the board voted unanimously to continue using the name and all members spoke glowingly of it? For some reporters, history starts with the last action that meets their political approval. Why didn’t the reporter call the board’s 2017 reversal of the policy it announced just 16 months (not to mention the board’s ban in the early 1990’s) before a story with long legs?
And you would think a reporter worth the name would want to investigate board actions expressly based on documents that were never produced. So much for transparency. Hmm, maybe it would be interesting to review those docs to see if the government was being truthful. Then again, why go to the effort when you agree with the government’s action?
This fourth estate seems to have matured (meaning it died). RIP.
I guess congratulations are due Mr. Hines. He managed to manufacture a “grave injustice” into a spot at Columbia University . I’m sure he’ll go far.