COLUMBIA, S.C. — Clemson will drop the name of slavery proponent John C. Calhoun from its honors college, university trustees announced Friday.
The honors college was named after Calhoun -- a slave owner and secessionist whose plantation became the university.
Nearly 20,000 people, including former football players DeShaun Watson and Deandre Hopkins signed a petition to change the name.
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The board is also requesting permission from the state legislature to rename an iconic campus building currently honoring “Pitchfork” Ben Tillman, the governor and U.S. senator who led a white mob that killed several black men at the end of Reconstruction.
Trustees cited the recent death of Minneapolis man George Floyd as an impetus for the renaming.