Proposed name changes for USC buildings opposed by State House leaders, unlikely to pass
While a commission recommended that the University of South Carolina change the names of several buildings on campus, the initiative faces opposition from many state lawmakers who, under the Heritage Act, would have to vote to approve any changes.
A draft of a report from the internal USC commission, released Wednesday, recommends renaming 11 buildings on campus, including the Strom Thurmond Wellness and Fitness Center.
Most of the building included on the list are currently named after South Carolina historical figures involved in what some would consider racist acts — ranging from serving in the Confederate government to opposing racial integration.
The commission recommended instead that the buildings be named after prominent Black figures in South Carolina’s history, such as U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, the House Majority Whip, and Ernest Finney Jr., who served as South Carolina’s first Black chief justice from 1994 to 2000.
Among the most powerful lawmakers in opposition to changing the names of buildings on USC’s campus, though, is House Speaker Jay Lucas, a Republican.
Lucas’ spokesperson did not provide comment on the newly publicized report, and instead referred The State to a 2015 statement the speaker made after the Confederate Flag was removed from the State House grounds.
“The South Carolina House of Representatives will not engage in or debate the specifics of public monuments, memorials, state buildings, road names or any other historical markers,” Lucas said then. “The General Assembly, the House in particular, made it abundantly clear during the debate of the Confederate flag that the only issue they were willing to discuss was the placement of the battle flag on the North lawn of the State House.”
“Debate over this issue will not be expanded or entertained throughout the remainder of my time as Speaker,” Lucas added.
S.C. Sen. Shane Massey, a Republican and the Majority Leader in the Senate, said Thursday if the measure were to reach the legislature, he also predicts it wouldn’t go anywhere.
Massey said he doesn’t think renaming buildings is “good policy.” While renaming buildings named after former S.C. Gov. “Pitchfork” Ben Tillman, a white supremacist who supported the practice of lynching, may seem like an easy choice, Massey said some lawmakers worry that it could cause a slippery slope, which could lead to the changing of buildings named after people with more mixed legacies, such as former longtime U.S. Sen. Strom Thurmond.
“I think especially when you go after, for instance, Strom Thurmond, who many people had a personal relationship with and many people still have fond memories of because they knew him personally, then it becomes a little bit more of a personal issue,” Massey said. “I haven’t heard any interest on our side to engage in the renaming debate.”
Neither S.C. Senate President Harvey Peeler nor S.C. House Majority Leader Gary Simrill could be immediately reached for comment.
To change the names of the buildings, the USC Board of Trustees would first need to approve the change. Next, the proposals would go to the Legislature. Under the Heritage Act, passed in 2000, two-thirds of the legislature would need to vote in favor of the move — a high hurdle to clear.
But the constitutionality of the Heritage Act has been under question in recent years.
In June 2020, S.C. Attorney General Alan Wilson’s office wrote that the Heritage Act is likely unconstitutional. Wilson is a Republican.
In May, the S.C. Supreme Court heard arguments over the law, and the five justices picked the act apart. They questioned whether the two-thirds vote requirement was constitutional and asked why specific wars or groups of people were singled out for protection.
A decision has yet to be issued in that case.
Democrats support some name changes
S.C. Rep Gilda Cobb-Hunter, the longest serving member of the House, said she doubts whether the initiative to change the building names would pass the Legislature if it even made it to the House floor.
“I would not expect success because most members of the General Assembly are spinally challenged when it comes to issues that are controversial,” said Cobb-Hunter. “Add to that an election year and the chances of it getting through are probably slim to none.”
All members of the House are up for re-election in 2022. The governor is also up for reelection that year as well.
“That doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be tried,” said Cobb-Hunter, D-Orangeburg.
Cobb-Hunter said she was in support of changing the building names. In particular, she singled out the building named after J. Marion Simms, a gynecologist who performed experiments on African American women.
“As a Black women, when I think about what he did to slave women, it’s nauseating and it’s certainly not worthy of being celebrated,” Cobb-Hunter said.
“It’s time for people to recognize who some considered heroes in the 20th century, that doesn’t translate into 21st century heroes,” she added.
Lawmakers whose district include the state’s flagship university said they were in support of at least some of the proposed name changes.
S.C. Rep. Seth Rose, D-Richland, said he was “thrilled” with the list compiled by the USC commission. Rose said the list of African American South Carolinians who’s names were put forward to replace the current building’s names were “excellent candidates.”
“For me, it’s not about changing history,” Rose said. “It’s more about not honoring those who deserve no place of honor.”
Rose, who attended USC for both his undergraduate degree and his law degree, said the university has enough prominent alumni and people who have impacted it in a positive way “that when a building is named after someone, it should not be controversial.”
S.C. Sen. Dick Harpootlian, D-Richland, said some of the people who’s names have been proposed for removal at buildings across the state where easy choices.
“There are people like Ben Tillman who lynched and murdered and pillaged,” Harpootlian said. “I think, clearly, his name ought to be removed from any building in the state and his statue should be removed from the State House grounds. He was a murderer and a terrorist.”
Tillman served as governor from 1890-94 and later as a U.S. senator from South Carolina.
“There’s no defense of him. None,” Harpootlian added.
Tillman does not have a building named after him at USC, but there have been efforts to rename Clemson University’s Tillman Hall.
However, Harpootlian said he did not agree with all the proposals made by the commission, specifically pointing to Thurmond and Soloman Blatt.
Thurmond served as governor and later as the U.S. senator from South Carolina. In the ‘40s and ‘50s, he was an ardent supporter of segregation, but he later reversed his stance. Thurmond abolished the poll tax and pushed for criminal prosecution of lynch mobs. Blatt was a longtime state lawmaker and former Speaker of the House, but was also a segregationist.
Harpootlian, who knew both Blatt and Thurmond personally, said their early views were painted by growing up during segregation, but they evolved over time.
“As times changed, they changed,” Harpootlian said.
While Thurmond’s actions in the ‘40s that supported segregation were “reprehensible,” Thurmond went on to do a number of good things for the state of South Carolina, Harpootlian said.
“He is not Ben Tillman. He is not someone who committed murder and did horrible things,” Harpootlian said. “We can’t erase our history.”
Harpootlian called the renaming of buildings a “complex issue.” He said people can’t be deleted from South Carolina history, but he added that it’s important to be “sensitive to what’s offensive.”
This story was originally published July 15, 2021 at 2:44 PM.
