Dick, the swastika was not created by the Nazi's either, they incorporated the symbol and it became a symbol of hate.   The symbol is still used by some cultures, but it can obviously make people feel very uncomfortable.

Whether "Pick a Bale of Cotton" was a slave song or not is not the issue (and now you have me wondering about it's origin), but the story is how it made some YOUNG students feel.   After reading the speech, I think the school made the right choice to pull it. It appears that they are also teaching the students the history of slaverly and why that song was controversial.   That is what counts.