JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — RELATED: Jacksonville historian says Confederate statues should not be used as 'political footballs'
Right now, Duval County Public Schools said it does not have any plans to change the names of schools named after Confederate leaders.
The discussion comes after white supremacist groups protested in Charlottesville, Virginia, and people showed up to counter their message.
Duval County has several campuses named after Confederate generals. Robert E. Lee High School, Kirby-Smith Middle School, J.E.B. Stuart Middle School and Jefferson Davis Middle School are among them.
“I understand what they’re protesting, but the statues are there so we can be reminded of history and basically make sure history doesn’t repeat itself,” Terry Williams, a senior at Robert E. Lee High School, said.
A couple of years ago, the district changed Nathan Bedford Forrest High School to Westside High School because of an outcry against Confederates.
According to Duval County Public Schools literature, “the school board shall name or rename schools. Community input is desired and highly valued; however, the school board has final authority over the name of any school.”
“Me and my dad, we talked about the school before I went to school in ninth grade. It was, like, he told me, 'He was a Confederate leader,' and all that,” Theodore Ingram, senior at Lee High School, said.
A school board member tells us that the board avoids naming new schools after people to avoid controversies such as this.
RELATED: Jacksonville City Council president begins process of removing Confederate monuments