RACINE, WI — Racine Horlick High School has had a Confederate soldier mascot for more than 70 years, and a petition is circulating to get the mascot changed.
Former Horlick High School student Shannon Campion has started a petition on Change.org to throw the Horlick Rebel — a scarlet-and-gray-clad confederate soldier — into the dustbin of history.
“I, along with many other Horlick students and alumni, am calling for Horlick High school to cut all ties to the confederacy. This includes any imagery around school that depicts, or is related to, confederate soldiers,” she wrote. “This also includes the mascot itself. Even if Rebby the Rebel is no longer outfitted in a confederate uniform, students, and the community, know what it represents. In the year 2020, it is PAST time for Horlick High school to create an anti-racist, truly excellent high school experience for all.”
Over the years, images of the Horlick Rebel were painted on the school’s walls, and were part of the school’s identity. In recent years, much of the imagery has been painted over — yet the school’s mascot and the name remain.
Members of Youth Empowered in the Struggle, a student advocacy group, approached school administration in year’s past to try to get the Horlick mascot changed.
Patch has reached out to Racine Unified School District officials for comment.
