Atlanta high school named after Confederate general renamed to honor Hank Aaron
Baseball legend Hank Aaron speaks at the LBJ Presidential Library on January 22, 2015. (Photo by Lauren Gerson.) ( )
ATLANTA - An Atlanta high school formerly named after a Confederate general and Ku Klux Klan leader will be renamed after an Atlanta baseball legend Wednesday.
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Atlanta Public Schools will hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony to officially rename Forrest Hill Academy to Henry Louis "Hank" Aaron New Beginnings Academy.
The school had previously been named for Nathan Bedford Forrest, a general for the Confederacy who was known as the first grand wizard of the KKK.
Aaron's wife Billye Aaron and the Atlanta Braves Foundation will attend the ceremony.
Renaming the school after Aaron was one of the options on the school's shortlist. However, Atlanta Public School policy states that schools can only be named after those who "have been deceased for five years" unless that restriction is with a unanimous school board vote.
Aaron died in January at the age of 86. "Hammerin’ Hank" set a wide array of career hitting records during his 23-year span, ultimately breaking Babe Ruth’s home run record while enduring racist threats.
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