Tennessee county commissioner proposes renaming Presidents' Day: 'Let's not ... whitewash'

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (TND) — A Democratic commissioner for Shelby County, Tennessee on Wednesday voiced strong support for replacing Presidents' Day countywide with a general celebration of friendship.

Shelby County’s Board of Commissioners met Wednesday to weigh whether the county should recognize Presidents' Day as a legal holiday for government employees. Commissioner Henri Brooks explained she was strongly opposed to the idea due to the fact the third Monday in February is recognized as George Washington’s birthday, not Presidents' Day, by the federal government.

“I think I made it very clear during committee that I could not honor George Washington and a number of the presidents for a number of obvious reasons,” Brooks noted.

She then asked board members not to ignore the presidents who had owned slaves while in office, saying "if we're going to honor his history and legacy, let's not cherrypick and whitewash.”

A masked Brooks then proposed an amendment recognizing the third Monday in February as a "Family, Friends, and Employees’ Holiday." The measure, titled "Racial Exclusion and Humiliation," would recognize “all Black enslaved persons bought, sold, and bred for profit by United States Presidents; and who built the White House itself including most other major buildings in the 18th century United States, such as Philadelphia's Independence Hall, Thomas Jefferson's Monticello and James Madison's Montpelier," according to KWAM.

Commissioner Britney Thorton echoed the sentiments, adding county holidays are intended to benefit “Shelby County workers, the majority of whom are Black women.” The board later voted to recognize Presidents' Day as a holiday, though a resolution to amend its official name could surface at a later meeting.

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Former President George Washington inherited slaves as an 11-year-old, according to Mount Vernon. Washington left instructions in his will to free 123 slaves working on his estate, making him the first president to have ever done so. Also included were instructions for the estate to care for slaves who were elderly or too sick to work “in perpetuity.”

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