Riverside Secondary to rename school's team due to racist roots

Anyone entering Riverside Secondary School in Windsor, Ont. Tuesday will notice some things missing — anything bearing the school's team name or mascot has been removed.

The Greater Essex County District School Board (GECDSB) is renaming the 58-year-old school's sports program and mascot over its racist roots.

The board says the Rebel name and mascot "Captain Rebel" have links to white supremacy and anti-Black racism.

"The students and alumni had done some digging and found some really startling and harmful connections to the Confederate flag, to a racist singer named Johnny Rebel, and to a history of anti-Black hate associated with the rebel," said Josh Canty, superintendent of education, student success, alternative education and equity at the GECDSB.

"We knew once this was brought to our attention that we had to take it down."

Students went to Riverside's administration in December last year asking for acknowledgement of the name's history and for something to be done about it, said Canty.

Once the school did its own research, administration saw that students were right, said Canty. 

"We had a meeting last week with our anti-Black racism advisory committee and they made it clear to us some members of the Black community have known about this for years, and wanted something done about it for years," he said. 

Angelina Ebegbuzie, a former Riverside student and current member of the GECDSB Anti Black Racism Advisory Committee, said she and other students raised issues with the logo and team name when she attended the school about 30 years ago.

"I was targeted a lot for a lot of my views," she said. "I was even told that maybe I just had an issue with the way they run things, that I was trying to incite a lot of hard feelings."

"After a while of being targeted, you're traumatized," Ebegbuzie said. "You kind of just say 'you know what, I just want to get my education.' You just want to do what you have to do and get out of there, and eventually I ended up leaving."

Ebegbuzie said she would get in trouble for refusing to wear the school uniform when she was a student. She called for "meaningful training" to address racism within schools.

She also expressed concern that the advisory committee wasn't notified or involved in the decision to change the name. 

Ros Salvador, the human rights equity system advisor for the board, said the name and mascot is a serious human rights issue.

"We know that the Ontario Human Rights Commission has given some really useful direction in this regard saying that being subjected to references of racist organizations creates a poisonous environment and discriminates against students contrary to the human rights code," said Salvador. 

The school's name refers to the Confederate Army, said Salvador, explaining that the racist organization fought for the enslavement of Black people.

"We know the name is profoundly harmful to Black students and Black communities and to Indigenous students and communities as well. So yes, there is a serious human rights concern and we wanted to act to rectify that," said Salvador. 

The school has removed almost all references to the team name and mascot except for a few items that are difficult to remove and need more work, said Canty. Another few items that may be considered anti-Indigenous were also removed, as administration looks to work with community members to understand if that imagery could also be harmful. 

LISTEN | Hear more from Canty and Salvador about the name and decision to remove it:

"I was really disappointed in myself in that, I taught for eight years at the school — I love that school and I didn't know," said Canty.

"I feel badly that the images were right there in front of me, it's like they say the fish can't see the ocean. I feel shame, but also optimism because I know we are doing the right thing and we're going to make this a safe an inclusive school."

Albert Mady, who attended Riverside from 1974 to 1977, said he found out about the name change on Monday.

He said he is in favour of removing the Confederate flag on the school's logo, but doesn't agree with the decision to remove the word "rebel."

"I've heard about Johnny Rebel, of course," Mady said. "But that has nothing to do with us here in Windsor, Ontario, Canada."

"That rebel word, to us, just meant 'go for it," he said. "It's not Johnny Rebel, or anything like that, and it has nothing to do with racism."

Students have been in exams this week out of the school, said Canty, but as they return Thursday the school is planning information sessions to help kids understand the decision, and offer support. 

A new team name will be decided by students and the school in the near future. 

Riverside Secondary is not the only local school to change its name due to racist roots. 

The GECDSB named a new school in Amherstburg North Star High School, after the former school's name in the town was questioned due to General Jeffrey Amherst's dark past. The military leader called for the use of disease-laced blankets to kill Canada's Indigenous peoples. 

For more stories about the experiences of Black Canadians — from anti-Black racism to success stories within the Black community — check out Being Black in Canada, a CBC project Black Canadians can be proud of. You can read more stories here.