SOUTH BURLINGTON, Vt. – A Vermont school board faces a lawsuit over its unilateral decision to change the local high school’s Rebel mascot to avoid alleged racist connotations tied to the Confederacy.

Parents, staff, alumni and other supporters of South Burlington High School’s Rebel mascot filed a lawsuit against the school district after the board voted unanimously to drop the moniker in February, Seven Days reports.

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The suit follows weeks of pressure from locals and two online petitions calling on board members to reconsider the decision and put the name change up for a public vote.

According to the news site:

One petition asked for a vote on the name itself, while a second called for a prohibition on spending public funds to change the name. Students, and later the school board, voted on and approved the new mascot: the Wolves.

In May, the board announced it would not allow voters to weigh in on the change, which prompted the lawsuit filed by four members of the Rebel Alliance, a group formed to fight the decision.

Robert Skiff Jr., Benjamin Nye, Stacey Savage and Marcie Bringham argued the decision to avoid a public vote violated due process, and a motion to dismiss the case filed by school district attorney Pietro Lynn counters that such due process isn’t required.

The “elected school board, not the electorate, has the authority to make operations and budgetary decisions and properly exercised its discretion in declining to put the Rebel name articles before the voters,” Lynn’s motion read.

Lynn wrote in an email to the Burlington Free Press that “Vermont statues clearly define the authority of the voters and school boards. Voter authority is restricted to a small number of determinations, like approving the proposed budget, electing board members and approving bonding.

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“Under Vermont law, only school boards may control the general operations of the school, including decisions about the school nickname,” she wrote.

In announcing the lawsuit earlier this month, Savage wrote the Rebel Alliance wants to “give the South Burlington community a voice” and alleged “the school board disenfranchised the voters of South Burlington by refusing to allow a city-wide vote on the Rebel name.”

The group has collected hundreds of signatures in support of a vote, and is taking credit for the failure of two recent budget votes, in April and June.

The lawsuit also notes the cost of the name change, estimated at $170,580. Superintendent David Young argued at a February board meeting that the cost would be $96,965 because some of the costs were already scheduled.

The Rebel Alliance has also questioned other district spending, including a catered lunch for teachers and staff during which they were asked to sign a petition in support of Young, and are vowing not to give up the fight to change the school mascot, the Free Press reports.

“South Burlington Rebels were taught to fight for what they believed was right and to never give up, and we are continuing that proud tradition,” Savage wrote.

And while the saga over the Rebel name drags on, school officials continue to fan the flames by unveiling school sports uniforms with the new Wolves name.

“They’re here! First @SBHSWolves uniforms (volleyball) arrived today!” South Burlington High School Principal Patrick Burke posted to Twitter on Monday. “SB AD Mr. Jabour proudly showing them off! #GoWolvesGo.”