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Journalism of Courage
Officials at a leading US university have been left red-faced after they renamed a law school after late Supreme Court judge Antonin Scalia prompted hilarity on social media over its acronym.
George Mason University in Virginia had first announced it would change the name to The Antonin Scalia School of Law, or ASSoL, after receiving an anonymous donation of $ 30 million on March 31.
The eagle-eyed immediately took to Twitter to point out that the acronym’s similarity to a vulgarity, with many of those tweeting not a fan of the conservative American justice.
The school acknowledged the problem in a letter to its students and alumni, writing, “The name initially announced — The Antonin Scalia School of Law — has caused some acronym controversy on social media. The Antonin Scalia Law School is a logical substitute.”
The school’s name change will go into effect on July 1, pending final approval by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia.
Antonin Scalia, one of the most conservative members of the US Supreme Court, died in February at the age of 79. He had been appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1986.
