I dont have a huge problem with taking down statues of confederate generals but its way too much of a stretch to tie racism to The Eyes of Texas
defendable or not I feel very strong on this and wont take it well at all if they are successful
At UT, most (probably all) of the confederate monuments were placed on campus in the early 1900s They were placed there at the behest of wealthy UT donor and regent, Major George Washington Littlefield, who had fought in the Civil War for the Texas Rangers of the Confederacy. Their intent was pretty clearly to defy the "Northern Aggression" and the result has always been that they make minorities uncomfortable and angry.
I suppose some small argument could be made in favor of maintaining monuments to Texans that also happened to be confederates, but Robert E Lee and Jefferson Davis were not Texas historical figures, and had no relation to The University of Texas. I don't think monuments to them were ever appropriate on the UT campus, and am happy to see them removed.
I also believe buildings that are named after known and documented racists-- guys like T.S. Painter who worked actively to keep black people out of the university-- should be renamed, without a second thought. I attended two different Physics classes in that building-- Painter Hall-- and, at the time, had no idea of Painter's racist history. If I had known, I would have been upset, back then.
The song, well, it might or it might not be something else. But as droog pointed out, I don't get to tell someone what they should be offended by. And at this point, the accusation of racism is likely enough to end its use. But perhaps a compromise can be reached, like I mentioned earlier. New lyrics that promote inclusiveness, and a well of support from former athletes, might be enough. Or it might not be.
