More Mascot Nonsense (my title)

USA Today College Hockey ^

[wbill]

Officials at St. Cloud (Minn.) State want the University of North Dakota to leave its Fighting Sioux logo at home when its men's hockey team visits Nov. 2. "We don't tolerate hate speech," said Sudie Hofmann, associate professor and chairwoman of St. Cloud State's human relations and multicultural education department. Hofmann thinks the nickname and logo insult American Indians. But North Dakota has received no official request about the logo, athletic director Roger Thomas said Monday. The dispute isn't new. In March, St. Cloud President Roy Saigo submitted a resolution to the NCAA seeking elimination of all American Indian nicknames. Last year Ralph Engelstad, a Sioux hockey goalie about 50 years ago, threatened to pull a $100 million pledge to build a hockey arena. The state's higher education board voted unanimously to keep the nickname, saying it upholds the state's tradition and honors American Indians.

[wbill]

Sad. Truly sad.

BTW, St Cloud's athletic director is Morris Kurtz and he can be EMailed at mkurtz@stcloudstate.edu The St Cloud Hockey web page is located at: http://www.stcloudstate.edu/~sports/hockey/hk.html

St. Cloud is pretty good this year...they stomped my favorite team (Maine) a couple of weeks ago. ND is one of the highest ranked teams in the country. Would be a shame to miss out on a great game because of a little PC BS.

[gumbo]

Last year Ralph Engelstad, a Sioux hockey goalie about 50 years ago, threatened to pull a $100 million pledge to build a hockey arena. The state's higher education board voted unanimously to keep the nickname

Heh. Money talks, and something else walks.

[Texaggie79]

Change the name to the North Dakota Queers!~

[gore_sux]

If St. Cloud does not wish to have NoDak at their arena, they can forfeit their games.

[GuillermoX]

Did they also petition the Minnesota VIKINGS and the NFL to have their own hometown team change its name? Or is having a name after "white" people OK...

[KillerWabbit]

We need a mascot for threads that have short stays in the breaking news column. Something with a short lifespan, but reproduces quickly and prolifically. I nominate the fruit fly.

[LoneGOPinCT]

I never understood this whole anti-"non-white" mascot thing. The point of a mascot is to be a source of pride and honor for the team. Generally they are strong or awe-inspiring objects/animals/people used to portray a powerful image to the opposition. How are they demeaning? San Diego Chicken aside.

[Paradox]

In March, St. Cloud President Roy Saigo submitted a resolution to the NCAA seeking elimination of all American Indian nicknames

I dont think the Seminole Tribe of Florida is going to like this. They frequently meet and vote overwhelmingly to allow Florida State University to use their image as the mascot. It is a source of pride. I think the columnist/native american David Yeagley would agree.

[07055]

The nickname of the St. Cloud team is the "Huskies."

Did they get permission from the dogs to use their name? Don't they know how Huskies are abused? (sarcasm) Sounds like "hate speech" to me.

[FreeTally]

The state's higher education board voted unanimously to keep the nickname, saying it upholds the state's tradition and honors American Indians.

This is exactly why this issue is never really given any credence, outside of a few isolated cases. Sports teams are generally named after something fierce, tough and hard to defeat, although sometimes simply after something native to that area. This is exactly why so many schools historically used Indians as mascots. It definitely is honoring them. You dont choose a mascot name to make yourself look weak or to make fun of yourself or something else. Here in Tallahasseee, the "Seminole" name is actually BACKED by the Florida Seminole Tribe. There are about three or four Seminoles not affiliated with the tribe that protest here and there, but are generally ignored. The people that bitch about this do so because there is nothing else to bitch about at that time.

[FreeTally]

See #10. You barely beat me to it.

[07055]

This school, despite being ultra-politically correct, has almost no minority students on campus. According to their website, their student body is only 3.5% minority (560 out of 15,650 students).

http://www.gohusky.org/news_1_enroll_increased.htm

[Dakmar]

Don't forget the Fightin' Irish. There's a mascot the PC morons overlooked.

[prambo]

Right!

The Oregon DUCKS have never seemed particularly awe inspiring (Then again, their uniforms are a little weird.). Or the uni in my area - The Syracuse Orangemen??? Actually I think their logo used to have an American Indian in it; now it's a fuzzy orange with legs and a stupid little beenie.

We're becoming a country of wimps, by attrition.

prambo

[VRWCmember]

Something with a short lifespan, but reproduces quickly and prolifically.

A wabbit comes to mind.

[EODGUY]

Well said! I don't think I've ever heard of a university calling it's athletic teams the UCLA Judases, or the Miami Hitlers, or the Boston College Benedict Arnolds.

As you so accurately stated, mascot names are chosen to exemplify courage, prowess and pride.

[VRWCmember]

San Diego Chicken aside.

What was the deal with the San Diego Chicken? How did they get a CHICKEN as a mascot. The only connection I can see is quite a stretch: Padre = Friar = Frier = Chicken.

[KillerWabbit]

How many times do I have to tell you.. it's duck season.

[Crusader Rabbit]

Hofmann thinks the nickname and logo insult American Indians.

Dear Miss Hofmann,

As an American Indian I must point out to you that unless you are one yourself you can only surmise the insult and I must suggest that your surmise is incorrect. I, on the other hand, am not so immature nor thin-skinned as self-appointed patricians such as yourself seem to believe.

From my perspective the real insult is the campaign by leftists to remove the image and name of the tribes from everything and every place in America. Unlike you, I am proud to be a citizen of this, the only nation founded on the ideals of the enlightenment [you have heard of the enlightenment at St. Cloud State haven't you?].

What is a much bigger insult to American Indians such as myself is that academe, in its unfettered racism, offers a plethora of scholarships to American Indians, but only to study soft subjects like "Native American [sic] Studies", Anthropology and Sociology. Apparently academicians believe that beyond selling cigarettes and running casinos we are only qualified to contemplate our own navels and should not bother to pursue Engineering or the Sciences.

Please do everyone a favor and keep your race-pity to yourself.

Sincerely,
CR

[Corporate Law]

Though the players may not agree with this PC bullshit, I agree with making them forfeit the games. I am not sure as to the league affiliations out there, but they may be in the same league and it could affect the title. Then lets see the fireworks erupt after the forfeiting of games for such a stupid reason.

[SaveTheChief]

As a proud alumnus of the University of Illinois, I must step up and say that this is going too far. There have been activists on campus for YEARS protesting the existence of Chief Illiniwek, the great tradition and a noble symbol of the university. HE is not a mascot. The Chief does not take part in any cartoonish, rabble rousing activities that are commnly displayed by mascot badgers, buckeyes, "Petes" (I don't know what the heck he is), and any number of other goalpost charging characters.

Yet these "representatives" of Native American culture say that The Chief is racist, that he portrays the now extinct Illini tribe in a shameful, disrespectful manner.

Nonsense

The Chief appears at halftime, as the marching band performs a traditional Illinois number, the "Three in One". The band opens the Three in One with a tune called "Pride Of The Illini", singing and marching downfield to the end zone. After one stanza, the band breaks out playing the same tune as they gather in the endsone. The Chief stealthfully makes his way to the middle of the band, keeping low and making his way to the field. When he breaks from the band, the croud errupts in cries of "CHIEF" as he leads the band back on the field doing a sort of traditional dance (exaggerated for the field) called "fancy dancing". When the dance ends and the band takes the formation of the wird "Illini", the chief raises his hands to the sky as we all sing "Hail to the Orange", the school alma mater.

When this is finished, so is The Chief. He returns with his traditional native american costume to the locker room and is not seen again.

I have seen this many many times, and cannot find one disrespectful, racist thing about this tradition. In fact, I believe The Chief celebrates the culture and the history of a proud people who are now long gone. It is because of The Chief that we know there were people who lived in Illinois long before any of us, and it is The Chief who makes me remember the university fondly, as a place where I grew up and learned what tradition and respect means.

And some people are trying to take these lessons away from the youth of today.

Although not every Native American "mascot" is up to the standards of Chief Illiniwek, I fear that the celebration of this proud race of people once found in great numbers throughout North America will be forced to end by those who simply have no clue and no respect of the past and those who choose to remember them.

This nonsense has to end

Save The Chief

[gore_sux]

If I make it to a game in St. Cloud this year, I'll make sure and have a few logo stickers along with me to place in a few strategic areas.

[LoneGOPinCT]

Padre = Friar = Frier = Chicken.

May be a tretch, but still funny as h*ll!

[LoneGOPinCT]

Or the St. John's former Redmen now Red Storm. What the heck is a Red Storm? The only thing that comes to mind are communist military images. Although given the loony-left slant in the PC world nowadays, that probably was their intent :-)

[EODGUY]

Crusader Rabbit shoots and SCORES. Very nicely written and I hope it is read by it's intended addressee.

[in the Arena]

When with the madness end ?

The school is very proud of it's hockey program and of it's mascot. Outside of their new arena they have erected a tribute statue to Sitting Bull.

There is a tradition at UND, when singing the Star Spangled Banner the final word "Brave" is replaced by "Sioux".

"O'er the land of the free and the home of the SIOUX?"

President Reagan visited the school in 86' or 87'. When the band played the Star Spangled Banner the crowd exploded with "the Sioux" at the end...The president had a great big smile and held up the hockey jersey with the Fighting Sioux logo that the school presented to him...and I believe the team won the NCAA crown that year.

[socal_parrot]

The San Diego Chicken started as a mascot for radio station KGB in the seventies. He broke from the station in the 80's and, after settling a lawsuit, was reborn as the San Diego Chicken. The Chicken as no direct affiliation with the Padres or Chargers. I liked the Friar=fryer thing though.

[S.O.S121.500]

Lemme get this right. A Defeated and Subjugated prehistoric (stone age) social group to whom the wheel was a mystery is making DEMANDS?

Kit Carson was right.

[S.O.S121.500]

Hold it hold it. Appears the demands are being made by scummy, parasitic, loser, slimey democraptic subhuman life forms which vote socialist democrat. Sorry.

[Verginius Rufus]

Didn't the students at Washington State vote for Banana Slugs as their mascot? Or maybe it was another university. Anyway I think the fuddy-duddies in the administration blocked it.

[KillerWabbit]

This place is crawling with wabbits... er, rabbits!

[Crusader Rabbit]

Evidently we have been multiplying.

[prambo]

You are giving this person WAY too much intellectual credit. You are so far over her head it's not even funny.

prambo

[wbill]

Try Maine for scholarships.

As of 10 years ago when I was there, they offered a full ride to anyone that can prove 1/8 blood. And there was no limit to the programs. It was a result of the Penobscot Land Claims agreement in the 70s.

As a matter of fact, the only person that I know that graduated as a result of the program was in Electrical Engineering.

Unfortunately, I knew a lot more kids that came in on the program and partied their way off the campus. Let me state strongly that I think that this is more a function of immature 17 and 18 year olds with nothing at stake in their education, than any racial commentary of any sort.

[RikaStrom]

. "We don't tolerate hate speech," said Sudie Hofmann, associate professor and chairwoman of St. Cloud State's human relations and multicultural education department.

Hate speech? A logo? Since when?

Sudie, go get a real life a leave decision making to the adults.

[the bottle let me down]

Didn't the students at Washington State vote for Banana Slugs as their mascot? Or maybe it was another university. Anyway I think the fuddy-duddies in the administration blocked it.

It's the University of California at Santa Cruz. I believe that the students use it.

[Crusader Rabbit]

Actually I do not advocate any scholarships based on race as they are inherently racist [apparently that tautology alone is over the head of the typical academician]. My point is that even if you accept the overall concept of race-based grants, the details of such programs reveal the depth of the racism of those who have written the rules.

I didn't get to be where I am in life by latching on to the pity of America-hating leftists, and when I examine the circumstances of my kinsmen who have latched on to it, I can only shake my head in sorrow.

[KillerWabbit]

Banana Slugs as their mascot?

Then maybe Fruit Fly isn't such a bad idea...

Or Army Ants...

Or Book Worms...

(Other visual pun sculptures here...)

[Crusader Rabbit]

Didn't the students at Washington State vote for Banana Slugs as their mascot? Or maybe it was another university. Anyway I think the fuddy-duddies in the administration blocked it.

It's the University of California at Santa Cruz. I believe that the students use it.

Wouldn't the Cannabis Indica plant be a more appropriate mascot for that student body?

[steve in DC]

Perhaps they should have the PETA folks complain about that "Huskies" mascot. After all, it is intolerable animal abuse to have those poor canines pulling those sleds around.

Come to think of it, what about that "Saint" business. That's foisting off state sponsored religion on all of us. Call the ACLU!

In fact if the Saint Cloud Huskies don't immediately change their name to the White Cloud Bathroom Tissues, they should be forced to forfeit the game.

[oyez]

Change the name from the Fightin' Irish to the Wussie Irish and I think there will be some kind of outcry.

[wbill]

I am very impressed with your extremely high standards. If only more people had the same moral fiber......

All too many fall into the 'Well, it's there anyway so I might as well take advantage' group. Or the 'gimme gimme gimme' group.

Or the 'All white people are racist pigs so I'm getting what I deserve' group. Lot of those out there, too.

[Dakmar]

Change the name from the Fightin' Irish to the Wussie Irish and I think there will be some kind of outcry.

I always thought "The Pukin' Drunk Irish" would be good, but I've been told I'm a bit weird.

[Crusader Rabbit]

All too many fall into the 'Well, it's there anyway so I might as well take advantage' group. Or the 'gimme gimme gimme' group.

Or the 'All white people are racist pigs so I'm getting what I deserve' group. Lot of those out there, too.

True enough, but look what that has wrought. Most resevations today are stricken with the full range of modern social ills [all of which seem to be most abundant where socialistic government programs are aimed]. The few who bring themselves up from there by honest means are considered (by popular culture) to be aberrant when they should be considered heroic.

In the face of the ample perverse incentives of our popular culture, it is fair to expect that you will be able to find plenty of people who succomb.

The reality is that most American Indians are very patriotic [note that in my family we have always put "American" first]. You wouldn't believe that if you relied on the "facts" offered by academicians.

[Crusader Rabbit]

By "succomb" I mean "succumb".

[bad fingers! bad!]

[Gumlegs]

The nickname of the St. Cloud team is the "Huskies."

Dogs have nothing to do with it! They're clearly trying to insult fat little boys who have to bear the taunts and name-calling of their caloricly efficient school-mates. St. Cloud State are Avoirdupoist Swine!

[Timesink]

F them. They either take the team as it is, or they FORFEIT.

[jrewingjr]

The best Non-PC mascot

West Virginia Mountaineer:
white man
with a gun
who celebrates by FIRING that gun
whose motto is Montani semper liberi, meaning
"Mountaineers are always free."

Hard to get less PC than that.

[afraidfortherepublic]

Did they also petition the Minnesota VIKINGS and the NFL to have their own hometown team change its name?

Yeah, when I was touring Ireland I learned that the locals use "Vikings" in a derogatory way, such as when they see a particularly bad driver coming, "Watch out, it's a Viking!" "Vikings" is obviously a term of hate speech.