ALBANY -- They removed the Confederate battle flag from South Albany High School 20 years ago. A Confederate soldier does not dance during football games. This year, one of the school's 10 black students led the cheers.

But every year, South Albany students and alumni ask themselves: Can we still call ourselves the Rebels?

The world has changed in the 40 years since the Linn County school broke away from Albany Union High. Earlier this month, South Carolina lawmakers even removed the Confederate battle flag from their state capitol grounds.

As South Albany has tried to craft a more generic Rebel, the community that surrounds it still fights to keep or give up the mascot. It's a symbol of the underdog, blue-collar workers they are, some say.

It's offensive, others say, and has even scared off sports opponents from urban schools.

The perennial debate brings up questions of racism, school pride and the power of symbols. Can their mascot, symbolized by a Civil War-era soldier with a floppy mustache, ever signify something other than a uniformed defender of slavery?

This far from the South, does it matter?

South Albany didn't become the Rebels until 1971, more than 100 years after the South lost the Civil War. Students and faculty chose the mascot as a cheeky joke. They were breaking off from Albany's

larger Union High School and thought it would be fun to play off the theme of secession.

Because Albany Union High School teams wore blue, just like Northern soldiers during the Civil War, South Albany adopted red and grey. The dance team became known as the Southern Belles. The sports

teams and the marching band used a Confederate flag as a show of school pride.

Rebels without racism? South Albany High School examines its Confederate mascot | OregonLive.com