Alums of historically black college upset band marching in Trump’s inaugural parade

Alumni of Alabama’s oldest private, historically black liberal arts college are upset their marching band accepted an invitation to perform in President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration parade, The Associated Press reports.

The Talladega College marching band will march along the streets of Washington, D.C., on Jan. 20 as other historically black college marching bands sit it out, the AP reported.

The move sparked debate on the college’s social media pages and alumni told the news service they disagreed with the decision.

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“We were a bit horrified to hear of the invitation,” Shirley Ferrill of Fairfield, Ala., a member of Talladega’s Class of 1974, told the AP.

“I don’t want my alma mater to give the appearance of supporting him,” Ferrill said. “Ignore, decline or whatever, but please don’t send our band out in our name to do that.”

The Presidential Inaugural Committee announced last week that the Talladega College Marching Tornadoes and 40 other groups were slated to participate in the parade.

Marist College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., also faced some controversy when it was announced their band would play in the parade.

The school’s spokesman told the AP that six to eight of the band’s 100 members chose not participate.

“They don’t want to have anything to do with the inauguration or President Trump and we respect that, and that’s their right,” school spokesman Greg Cannon said.

Alumni of other historically black colleges around the country have said they would not want their marching bands performing in the parade either. Howard University, which performed at President Obama’s first inaugural parade, won’t participate in Trump’s.

Ron White, a graduate of Fort Valley State University in Georgia, questioned why these marching bands “should be playing all these patriotic tunes for someone who has degraded us,” according to the AP.

He went on to say the band should take the opportunity to honor the country.

“What they should do in my opinion is play that national anthem the best way they’ve ever played it in their life, because you’re basically saluting the country,” White said.