Controversy has been raging across our country as people tear down objectionable monuments and change the names of institutions that connote evil.
I'm Ami Horowitz and I'm here on the campus of George Washington University named after our first president and also a slave owner.
I wonder if students here think we should keep the name or change it?
Do you think it's time for us to consider changing the name of the University?
Ooh, I don't know that I have an opinion. This question's putting me in a fix. I can't decide.
Do you think we should consider changing the name of the University?
Um, I think it's definitely worth having a discussion about it.
Gosh that's really a hard question there's so much that goes into the name of an institution.
I don't think I can answer that, but I'd say I'd like to hear more opinions.
Personally, I would change the name.
I think that it should be changed. I think that recognition is super important and I think that...
Ami Recognition of?
recognition for who he was as a person.
I don't agree with the slave trade, so um... so yeah.
Ami Would you change the name if you could do it?
Yeah. Yeah, sure.
That was . It's and I think it's important that we realize and reupholster the systems that built us.
Sure, I think we should change the name.
I would probably change the name, but I would do so universally.
Like if I were to change the name of GW, then I would advocate that things named after slave holders in general should be changed.
We've sort of retrospectively mythologized this this concept of liberty and freedom.
We just recently got rid of the Nathan Bedford Forrest statue that was in Overton Park so, I mean, just keeping in line with like...
Ami And this is kind of similar?
Uh, yeah.
It's not to say that he wasn't an important man back then, it's just saying that in this day and age it's not as important, I don't think.
Ami What's the first thing comes to mind when I say George Washington?
I think about him owning slaves, yeah.
The hypocrisy of slavery.
Ami V.O. Thank God not everybody felt this way.
Ami Do you think it's time to change the name of this University?
Absolutely not. This is one of our founding fathers.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=ietKrAXXsco
