The district announced the closure Thursday afternoon, hours after the school day ended in a lockdown — for the second day in a row. All students were sent home by bus, even those who normally walk or drive to school, after someone sent an email threatening to kill five teachers and 11 students, WCAX-TV reported.
The email allegedly made reference to the controversial decision to drop the high school’s nickname, the Rebels, according to the Burlington Free Press.
“THIS COULD’VE BEEN PREVENTED FROM KEEPING THE REBEL NAME. NOW I’m gonna have to attack you all. I don’t care for my own life as long as you’re all dead!!!!!” the email reads, according to the Free Press.
The name change has stirred up community members. Critics say the Rebel name has racist overtones because it alludes to the Confederate South. Defenders believe the name is innocuous and want to keep it — even though the school board approved a change in February.
The school budget, which includes money to scrub the Rebel name from playing fields, banners and sports jerseys, has twice failed in a vote.
South Burlington schools also went into lockdown Wednesday after threats. Someone emailed threats to the high school and Frederick H. Tuttle Middle School on Tuesday, too, according to WCAX.
A community forum on heroin that was scheduled to be held at the South Burlington High School on Thursday evening was subsequently canceled, police said.
Schools in Essex were locked down and evacuated last week after a threat there. Police later said the incident appeared to be a case of “swatting” — a false report of a crime intended to trigger a massive police response.
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I wish people had this much fervor about our children’s K-12 education curriculum, nutrition, and improving access to higher education. Somehow I think these impact the health and prospects of our society more than school nicknames. But maybe not. In this era of ideology over facts maybe it’s just as well we all spend our energy going crazy and arguing about nicknames instead of thinking about how to improve our education system, environment, and health care.
RA, you loving this?
I hope that the past few days have brought many people new understanding of the terror, racism, and violence that underlie the Rebel moniker. From the verbal threats expressed by Dan Emmons to the written threats of *murder* of individual teachers and students delivered today and the resulting chaos and fear, the racism and hatred pervading this issue have been made clear. It is (long past) time for the citizens of South Burlington to stand up and reject the Rebel name and the racist history it represents.
These are the inevitable wages of constant social fever and identity politics and just plain relentless leftist-regressive ‘anti-racist’ assaults on anything and everything. Even the altruistic and ‘progressively’ pliant White Folk of Vermont can be pushed to the point where some backlash is inevitable. The double standards when it comes to who can celebrate their heritage and who must exhibit endless shame for theirs are an hysterical mockery whose days are numbered. Political Correctness is a mental disease – any free and open forum for discussion of politics and social issues quickly becomes a raft built of rational and conservative planks. It is only liberal and otherwise subversive ideas that require force and censorship and gas lighting and outright lies to sustain and keep afloat. And clearly, when those violent tactics and methods reach the ends of their tethers, as we have just witnessed in Berkeley this past week, the righteous reaction is made manifest. Good times, eh? Fun for all.
I think these threats are coming from the PC crowd to try to drum up sympathy for their cause. Total false flag.
I totally called this one. Let this ordeal shine a spotlight on who’s truly stoking racial animosity in our community (the liberals).