Latino Activists Protest Renaming Illinois School after Barack and Michelle Obama

Latino activists are pushing to keep former president Barack Obama’s name off a school building in Illinois over his broken promises on immigration as the Waukegan Board of Education looks to rename two of its schools, Thomas Jefferson Middle School and Daniel Webster Middle School.

The board formed renaming committees for the schools named after Jefferson, who owned slaves, and Webster, who supported slavery. The committees, comprised of community, students, and staff, proposed that Barack Obama and the former first lady, Michelle Obama, be added to a final list of new names being considered for Thomas Jefferson Middle School.