THE TOP THREE REASONS the UNIVERSITY of TEXAS HAS a BUILDING NAMED for a KLANSMAN

According to a scholarly report recently published by Professor Thomas D. Russell, the University of Texas has a building named for a prominent organizer and promoter of the Klan. Simkins Hall, named for long-time law school professor William S. Simkins, was so named five weeks after the landmark Brown v Board of Education ruling. The UT law school, headed by Dean Page Keeton, intended this to be a sharp stick to the eye of the highest court in the land.

Simkins' Klan in Florida was one of the most violent of all Klans. And he promoted the Klan in his classes at UT and in writings and in speeches.

Of course the irony escapes many. UT has a building named for a LAW school professor who actively promoted a terrorist organization OPERATING OUTSIDE THE LAW. Unbelievable!

Here are the sources:

http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1583606

http://volokh.com/2010/05/24/the-bernadine-dorhn-of-the-early-20th-century-the-terrorist-professor-at-u-of-texas-law-school/

The University does not contest any of the facts in either of the sources linked above. So then, why have they not addressed the issue?

The University's response: appoint a committee to study the issue.

The Klan, formed in Tennessee immediately after Lee's surrender, was involved in a May 1866 rampage in Memphis that killed over 40 Negroes and 2 whites. Five women were raped. The same year in New Orleans, over 30 Negroes were murdered by a mob. Over the years thousands were illegally hanged and/or burned by Klan members. There were dozens of lynchings in Texas alone.

HUBRIS - by God, we are the University of Texas, a university of the first class as required by the Texas Constitution of 1876. We have a Permanent University Fund larger than the GDP of many states. We will do whatever we damn well please.

STUPIDITY - they have no clue as to the damage already done. The story has been covered by over 70 media outlets nationwide including 200,000 tweets by Fox News.

NAME CHANGE - when Texas secedes, UT will change its name to Jim Crow University. And the rest of the nation will think good riddance.

The University, my alma mater, has a history of racism and racial insensitivity. In light of this, it seems they would be pro-active rather than inactive.