Greenville debates Wade Hampton issue

Speaking at forum Thursday, panelists on either side of the Wade Hampton High School issue argued passionately for and against dropping the school’s name.

Proponents of a name change have said a modern, respected high school should not bear the name of a Confederate lieutenant general and slaveholder.

“Would we ask a Kurdish child to attend Saddam Hussein High School?” Rev. Deb Richardson-Moore asked at Thursday’s panel discussion, which took place at the Hughes Main Library.

“Would we ask a Jewish child to attend Adolf Hitler High School?”

But school board trustee Lynda Leventis-Wells, herself a graduate of Wade Hampton, said most people associate the name of the school not with a Confederate general but with a respected institution known for its high academic standards and philanthropic endeavors.

“We looked at Wade Hampton as a school that we loved,” Leventis-Wells said. “Our academics were important to us, our camaraderie. We keep our history and we build on it. When I think of Wade Hampton, it’s to educate, inspire and empower. Why would we wipe it out? Learn from our history.”

The forum, “What’s In a Name?” was sponsored by The Greenville News.

This story was originally published September 7, 2017 at 9:10 PM with the headline "Greenville debates Wade Hampton issue."