Group Wants Old South Symbols to Remain at Ole Miss

OXFORD, Miss. (AP) – A Confederate history group is asking a court to block the University of Mississippi from changing Old South symbols on campus.

The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal reports Wednesday that Sons of Confederate Veterans filed papers Sept. 18 in Lafayette County Chancery Court. The group seeks an order to stop the university from making changes such as renaming Confederate Drive.

University attorney Lee Tyner says he will respond later. A hearing is set for Oct. 27.

The university said Aug. 1 it would provide historical context for Old South symbols on the Oxford campus, including possibly adding a plaque to a Confederate soldier statue. The school recommended limiting use of its Ole Miss nickname to athletics, not academics.

“Ole Miss” originally was a name slaves used for a plantation owner’s wife.