In a bid to challenge the recently reverted school names honoring Confederate leaders, the Virginia NAACP has filed a federal lawsuit against the Shenandoah County School Board. The lawsuit claims that the decision to restore the names of Stonewall Jackson, Robert E. Lee, and Turner Ashby to two local schools creates an unlawful and discriminatory environment for Black students.

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia, includes five students who refuse to glorify historical figures that fought to maintain slavery and white supremacy. The plaintiffs argue that forcing them to represent these individuals goes against their values and undermines their sense of belonging within the school community.

During a news conference on Tuesday, Reverend Cozy Bailey, the Virginia NAACP president, condemned the board's decision, likening it to the injustices and intimidation tactics of the Jim Crow era. He expressed concerns that embracing Confederate names would perpetuate racial exclusion and return Shenandoah County and the Commonwealth of Virginia to a time when segregation was law.

The controversy stems from the school board's May 9 vote to revert Mountain View High School to its former name, Stonewall Jackson High School, and Honey Run Elementary School to Ashby-Lee Elementary School. These names had been removed almost four years ago as part of a broader reassessment of Confederate monuments and landmarks across the United States.

Opponents of the name change, including some current students, argued that the original decision in 1959 to name the schools after Confederate generals coincided with Virginia's resistance to desegregating schools in defiance of the Supreme Court's landmark ruling in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas. They contended that embracing Confederate names now would perpetuate regressive and racist notions, tarnishing the county's reputation.

Supporters of the 2020 name change reversal claimed that removing the Confederate figures' names from the schools was merely a knee-jerk reaction to the protests following George Floyd's murder by police. They argued that the change erased the region's history and silenced the majority. Some also criticized the decision as being made hastily and without sufficient debate.

The school board ultimately voted 5-1 to restore the Confederate names. However, the decision has sparked intense backlash from students and community members who feel unwelcome and uncomfortable with the association of these names.

The federal lawsuit filed by the Virginia NAACP seeks to maintain the schools' recent names, Mountain View High School and Honey Run Elementary School, and prevent future discriminatory names or symbols. The plaintiffs argue that reinstating the Confederate names violates the First and Fourteenth Amendments, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Equal Education Opportunities Act.

Ashley Joyner Chavous, an attorney from the Covington & Burling law firm representing the plaintiffs, emphasized during the news conference that the goal of the lawsuit is not to seek damages but to push for meaningful change in the right direction. Marja Plater from the Washington Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs, another attorney involved in the suit, highlighted the harmful effects of exposing students of color to symbols that perpetuate racism and hate, compromising their self-worth and long-term wellbeing.

The lawsuit now awaits its day in court, presenting an opportunity for a judicial determination on whether the restoration of Confederate names infringes upon the rights and well-being of students in Shenandoah County schools.