The Texas House of Representatives unanimously passed a resolution on Monday urging the federal government to step in and approve changes to offensive names of places in the state.
At least 25 places in Texas have the word “Negro” in their names, according to U.S. Board on Geographic Names . This excludes the use of the term when it refers to the Spanish word for the color Black.
“The word Negro is derivative of [the N word], which is a very offensive word to people of color,” said Democratic Sen. Borris Miles, who wrote the resolution.
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Concurrent resolution 29, which was passed in the House by a vote of 146-0 on May 24, expresses “commitment to eliminating racially offensive place names,” and urges the board to approve name changes.
State lawmakers urge federal government to remove the term “Negro” from Texas place names
Texas Tribune
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The state Capitol on Jan. 12, 2021.
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Texas lawmakers are asking the federal government to remove the term “Negro” from dozens of places across the state where the word appears in the location’s name.
The move by the Legislature comes three decades after Texas passed a law that was supposed to rename the places after Black Americans
who made a significant contribution to Texas. But the U.S. Board for Geographic Names, the federal entity with the final say over any natural place name in the country, blocked the changes, saying there was a lack of demonstrated local support for the proposed new names or opposition to current ones.
Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune
Sign up for The Brief, our daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news.
Texas lawmakers are asking the federal government to remove the term âNegroâ from dozens of places across the state where the word appears in the locationâs name.
The move by the Legislature comes three decades after Texas passed a law that was supposed to rename the places after Black Americans
who made a âsignificant contributionâ to Texas. But the U.S. Board for Geographic Names, the federal entity with the final say over any natural place name in the country, blocked the changes, saying there was a lack of demonstrated local support for the proposed new names or opposition to current ones.