The Day Fans Made History

Jennifer Marino is the founder of a campaign to remove the cover over Michael Jackson’s name on the facade of Gardner School auditorium. She and her team had meetings with school officials. They created a page on Facebook and, by setting up a website with fans from all over the world, asked everyone to help them.

Michael’s name is now back out from under the cover, but the work of this team is not finished yet. They will have another meeting with Gardner School officials on Tuesday this week. Jennifer Marino said that during previous visits with school employees, she found that they were also eager for Michael’s name to come out from under the cover, and they had voted in favor of the plan. Even the principal of Gardner School, Mr. Urbina, had been impressed by the organization and efforts of the fans.

Jennifer Marino says today is the day fans made history for Michael Jackson.

The Los Angeles Times also dedicated an article to this event, saying:

After seven years, on Friday, the district’s top education official ordered that the cover be removed from Michael Jackson’s name—as a sign of appreciation for his musical legacy and his services in modern culture.

A district spokesperson said that part of this decision was due to Michael Jackson’s acquittal of his allegations. The cover in question had been placed over his name after the allegations were brought against him in 2003.

On Friday night, the Facebook page of the Michael Jackson Name Freedom campaign was full of congratulatory messages. One person wrote:

“I’m in tears. I wish he were here and could see this!”

On that page, photos of fans in countries such as Japan and Sri Lanka can be seen holding signs that say “Free Michael’s Name.”

Fans had planned to show up at the school on Thursday and present their request to the school board.

We are also happy to have been part of this campaign, and we thank you for supporting this effort with your emails.

Source: eMJey / Facebook / LA Times