Originally Posted by 4thplz
In many of the Baltimore City schools there are not enough textbooks, students have to share, some classrooms only have a couple for all the students.
Two million could have bought a lot of textbooks. Could have even bought a few books about Thurgood Marshall so the students could learn about all the good things he did when he was on the bench.
Most of the $2 million in costs comes out of the landing fees, which under federal rules have to be revenue neutral, so the State of Maryland (I went to public schools there) would not be able to add $2 million to its general fund if it did not make the name change.
Having a more genaric name such as Thurgood Marshall helps marketing since it does not tie it as specifically to Baltimore, which is why it has been called "Friendship" and "Baltimore-Washington" over the years. "Take Southwest to Washington via Thurgood Marshall!" If I had a choice between Ronald Reagan and Thurgood Marshall and knew little about where they were, I would take Thurgood Marshall, just because I liked him better than Reagan. Marshall has better fares too.