Why Byrnes High athletic greats are behind the push to change Upstate school’s name
Stanley Hunter and Prince Miller starred for the Byrnes Rebels in the mid-2000s and helped build one of the top high school football powerhouses in the country as Byrnes won eight state titles between 2002 and 2011.
Now the two are a part of a group pushing to change the name of Byrnes High School — located in Duncan, just west of Spartanburg.
Hunter, who played college football at Clemson, and Miller, who went on to play at Georgia, recently joined fellow Byrnes alum Terray Kelly to form the group “reBELs 4 Change” in the wake of George Floyd’s death and the push across the country to end racism.
The group wants several changes to happen in Spartanburg County School District 5, including the name of Byrnes High, which is named after James F. Byrnes. A former politician who died in 1972, Byrnes was a white supremacist who was famously against the ending of segregation.
Black students in District 5 attended Florence Chapel High, while white students attended Byrnes High until the 1968-69 school year when the schools were integrated. Byrnes then turned into the high school for all students, while Florence Chapel was turned into a middle school.
“We used football as a tool to bring people together. We were definitely uneducated and unaware of who James F. Byrnes was. The only thing we knew was he was the governor,” Hunter said of his time at Byrnes. “All of the racist quotes and the racist things he stood for ... I was unaware of that as a kid. But now we know better and I feel like we should do better.”
‘He didn’t want us to be Rebels’
The “reBELs 4 Change” group met with Byrnes principal Todd Hardy, Spartanburg District 5 superintendent Randall Gary, District 5 Board of Trustees chair Julie McMakin, Byrnes football coach Reggie Shaw and other District 5 staff members last month about changes they would like to see take place.
Hunter, Miller and Kelly are expected to formally speak at the next school board meeting in August.
Hunter believes having the school named after Byrnes is “a slap in the face” to the former and current Black athletes and students. A petition has been started to change the name of the school. It currently has nearly 1,200 signatures.
“Every time we talk to someone who is against the name change, one of the first things they always say is how much they love sports. But if you really think about that, it’s contradictory to what they’re saying because what we know as success wouldn’t be if James F. Byrnes’ ideas and wishes came true,” Hunter said. “Do you not realize that if James F. Byrnes’ wishes came true, those same players that you rooted for while you were growing up dreaming about being a Rebel wouldn’t have been able to be a Rebel? He didn’t want us to be Rebels.”
While Hunter, Miller and Kelly are the co-founders of the organization, they say they have received support from many former teammates, coaches and community members, both Black and white.
One person in particular who wants his voice heard about the subject is former Byrnes and South Carolina star running back Marcus Lattimore. Arguably the best football player in Byrnes history, Lattimore believes it is past time for the name of the high school in Duncan to change.
“There is a lot of history that is hidden. It stains the city of Duncan. ... I am wholeheartedly and 100 percent for the change of the name, because it holds us back from advancing forward,” Lattimore said. “All we’re doing right now is seizing the historical moment, because that’s what we’re in. We’re in the middle of a revolution right now where Black voices are being heard. All of the things that have been repressed in our minds are no longer being repressed, and we want change.”
Hunter described the initial meeting with District 5 administrators as a positive step in the right direction, but Spartanburg District 5 director of public relations Melissa Robinette advised that there are still several steps to go through before a potential name change would occur.
“We’re very much in the preliminary stages of this. That means that we’re aware of the petition and that we have met with them,” Robinette said. “It was just an open-dialogue meeting. They requested the meeting. And so we wanted to sit down with them. I feel like it was a very productive meeting in terms of we wanted to hear their concerns and we wanted them to have a place to voice those concerns. That’s kind of where we left it.”
Robinette added that this is likely to be a lengthy process.
After “reBELs 4 Change” members speak at the board meeting next month, there are still other steps before a vote would take place within the school board members.
“Anything before our board in general, if it’s like a resolution or something for a formal vote, it has to be presented twice to the board and on the third reading it gains approval,” Robinette said. “So I would view this as a very first step in terms of them presenting their grievances to the board and allowing the board to hear that. This is so much very in the early stages.”
Another hurdle that could slow the process is the Heritage Act, which seeks to preserve the history of South Carolina as memorialized in public spaces.
“It might, at the end of the day, be in the state legislature’s hands. We’re still trying to get some clarification on that because of the Heritage Act,” Robinette said. “What we’ve preliminarily been told by our attorneys is that this might fall under the caveat of historical figures. Even though James F. Byrnes was not a Confederate figure, he is a historical figure because he was the governor of South Carolina. So we’re still trying to get clarification on that.”
What change is sought for Byrnes High?
Hunter, Miller and Kelly are committed to bringing about change, even if it takes some time.
The group has four major issues that it’s addressing with the district:
1. Change the name of James F. Byrnes High School to respect and represent dignity and pride for the culture of the community sectors it serves.
2. Change the mascot of James F. Byrnes High School (drop the “Rebels” name) to respect and represent dignity and pride for the culture of the community sectors it serves.
3. Fund and deliver high-quality initiatives for Black students that will result in educational equality.
4. Recruit and hire faculty and administrators that are racially, culturally and ethnically representative of the community in proportion to the population of the community.
District 5 Board of Trustees Chair Julie McMakin released the following statement after meeting with Hunter, Miller and Kelly:
“The Spartanburg District Five Board of Trustees is aware of the current petition circulating to change the name of James F. Byrnes High School. I, along with District leaders, met with the organizers of the petition this week, and sincerely listened to their concerns. As we expressed to them, Spartanburg District Five firmly stands against racism, and believes that our motto of ‘Every Child, Every Day’ means we must celebrate and support students of all colors and backgrounds.
“However, change does not happen overnight, and this issue is one that must be researched. Ultimately, it might be in the hands of our General Assembly, and South Carolina’s ‘Heritage Act,’ which legislates buildings named after historical figures.”
This isn’t the first time there has been a movement started to change the “Rebels” nickname or to make other changes at the school.
Byrnes High had a Confederate soldier as its mascot and students waved the Confederate flag while the band played “Dixie” at football games until 1991 when national media attention led to changes. There was a push to end the “Rebels” nickname in 2015 after Dylan Roof killed nine Black people at the Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston.
The effort with Byrnes High is part of a push around the state and the country to make changes related to building names and statues. Clemson football players organized a “march for change” last month to fight against racism, with approximately 3,000 people on hand for the event. Clemson also changed its honors college from the Calhoun Honors College to the Clemson University Honors College because of John C. Calhoun’s belief that slavery was “a positive good.”
Clemson University and Winthrop University officials are asking for South Carolina lawmakers to help them change the name of buildings named after Ben Tillman that are on their campuses. Tillman was a white supremacist who said that “white violence was justified and to be expected whenever white supremacy was challenged.”
Lattimore and other famous South Carolina alums have pushed for the Strom Thurmond Wellness and Fitness Center to be renamed because of Thurmond’s opposition to racial integration. And a petition to rename Strom Thurmond High School located in Johnston, South Carolina has also been created.
The “reBELs 4 Change” group is planning to hold a rally at Byrnes High School on July 18. The group has spoken with Duncan Police Chief Carl Long and received a permit to hold the protest.
“Similar to what Clemson has done and what other schools are doing, we want to involve the student-athletes,” Hunter said. “Community members, student-athletes, teachers, faculty … we want it to be together, so I think the more people from different departments that we have together within the school and the community speaks volumes to how important these issues are.”
