UNC removes names of men from 4 buildings, cites racist ties

CHAPEL HILL, NC (AP) — The University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill is removing names of men from campus buildings who have ties to white supremacy and racism.

The Raleigh News & Observer reported Wednesday that the campus Board of Trustees voted to remove the names of Charles B. Aycock, Julian S. Carr, Josephus Daniels and Thomas Ruffin Sr.

The university’s Commission on History, Race & A Way Forward said the men used their power to disenfranchise Black people.

Daniels was listed as one of the causes behind the Wilmington Massacre of 1898, according to a state-sanctioned report.

The men include a former governor as well as a man who helped finance the state’s Democratic Party in the late 1800s.

Another is a former publisher of the News & Observer. The fourth is a former state Supreme Court chief justice.