Julius L. Chambers High School held its first Chambers Day and unveiled a new mural Friday morning to honor its namesake, a major player in the Civil Rights Movement.
In 2020, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Board decided to rename Zebulon B. Vance High School. He was a North Carolina governor and Confederate officer.
Chambers, who was born in Mount Gilead, North Carolina, was an attorney in Charlotte. He worked on major cases including the landmark Swann vs. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education, which led to busing to integrate local schools in 1971.
Before today’s homecoming festivities, school Principal Travares Hicks said having a day like this is crucial to education. “It starts with self-identity,” Hicks said.
“Oftentimes if you don't know who you are, you can't find out where you need to go. So it's remarkable to have this day because it helps our students understand where we came from. So to know that each day on this campus is not a day we take in vain," he said.
Chambers sophomore Jaxon Cook said he learned a lot about the school's history preparing for the day.
"I've learned that obviously in the past Zebulon Vance wasn't a very good person,” Cook said.
“And then now we have an actual person to actually change a group of people and how they think. So, yeah, I, I feel like it's a very good decision to change it to Chambers.”
