http://www.changethemascot.org/history-of-progress/
What do you guys think?
Notable Colleges and Universities That Have Changed Their Names
(from usatoday.com)
I thought North Dakota now went by the name "Fighting Whatchamacallits."
Would it be off-topic to mention the Brooklyn Trolley Dodgers ?
The Univ. Of Northern Colorado
" FIGHTING WHITIES"
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University of Northern Colorado Fighting Whities intramural basketball team
The Fighting Whites (alternatively identified as Fightin' Whites, Fighting Whities, or Fightin' Whities) were an intramural basketball team formed at the University of Northern Colorado in 2002 and named in response to the Native American mascot controversy.[1]
The intramural college team briefly attracted a storm of national attention because of its satirical protest about stereotypes of Native Americans being used as sports mascots, particularly the "Fightin' Reds" of Eaton High School in Eaton, Colorado, not far from the university in Greeley. The Reds' mascot has been described as "a caricature Indian with a misshapen nose, [wearing] a loincloth and eagle feather".[2]
The intramural team, which included players of Native American, white, and Latino ancestry,[3][4] adopted the name "Fighting Whites", with an accompanying logo of a stereotypical "white man" in a suit,[5] styled after advertising art of the 1950s, as their team mascot. The character has been described as a man from the Ozzie Nelson era[6] or a "Father Knows Best white American male".[7]
At first, the team's T-shirts used "Fightin' Whites" as the name of the team, but various media reports referred to the team as the "Whities" instead of "Whites".[8] The plan to insult whites in the same way the minority students perceived Native Americans being insulted[citation needed] backfired on the group when the team's popularity skyrocketed. In response to customer demand, the team eventually began selling shirts under both names. The team added the phrase "Fighting the use of Native American stereotypes" to its merchandise to discourage the shirts from being worn by white supremacists, and arranged for CafePress.com to handle manufacturing and sales of the clothing.[9]
The team sold enough shirts that they were eventually able to endow a sizeable scholarship fund for Native American students at Northern Colorado. In 2003, the team donated $100,000 to the University of Northern Colorado's UNC Foundation, which included $79,000 designated for the "Fightin' Whites Minority Scholarship".[10]
SS,
Your post on the "Fighting Whities" is worthy of "post of the week"..........for next week.
That story is amazing and hilarious.
Carl,
How about the Cleveland INDIANS?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Native_American_mascot_controversy
"Social science research says that sports mascots and images, rather than being mere entertainment, are important symbols with deeper psychological and social effects.[3] The accumulation of research on the harm done has led to over 115 professional organizations representing civil rights, educational, athletic, and scientific experts adopting resolutions or policies that state that the use of Native American names and/or symbols by non-native sports teams is a form of ethnic stereotyping that promotes misunderstanding and prejudice which contributes to other problems faced by Native Americans.[4][5]
Defenders of the current usage often state their intention to honor Native Americans by referring to positive traits, such as fighting spirit and being aggressive, brave, stoic, dedicated, and proud; while opponents see these traits as being based upon stereotypes of Native Americans as savages.[6] In general, the social sciences recognize that all stereotypes, whether positive or negative, are harmful because they promote false or misleading associations between a group and an attribute, fostering a disrespectful relationship. The injustice of such stereotypes is recognized with regard to other racial or ethnic groups, thus mascots are morally questionable regardless of offense being taken by individuals.[7] Defenders of the status quo also state that the issue is not important, being only about sports, and that the opposition is nothing more than "political correctness", which change advocates argue ignores the extensive evidence of harmful effects of stereotypes and bias.[8] Although there has been a steady decline in the number of teams doing so, Native American images and nicknames nevertheless remain fairly common in American and Canadian sports, and may be found in use at all levels, from youth teams to professional sports franchises."
"Would it be off-topic to mention the Brooklyn Trolley Dodgers ?"
Carl,
Once again, you've taught me something. I had no idea of the origin of their name.
https://gizmodo.com/the-la-dodgers-got-their-name-from-brooklyns-deadly-str-1687077696
"At this point in baseball history, teams were largely known by their colors, and it was up to the newspaper writers to come up with their names. The Brooklyn Grays became the Brooklyn Bridegrooms in 1888, for instance, because six members of the team got married during the season. A few years later, however, another name started appearing in the press: the Brooklyn Trolley Dodgers."
It wasn’t until the 1890s, when the Brooklyn Rapid Transit started to replace the rickety old trolleys. These fast-moving trolley cars were powered by a new-fangled thing called electricity.
This is where the story gets dark. In the late 19th-century, Americans weren’t accustomed to fast-moving vehicles running down city streets. Brooklyn was actually the second city in America to get an electric trolley line. As such, pedestrians hadn’t learned the habit of looking both ways when crossing the street. After all, if you stepped out in front of a horse, the horse would typically just stop in its tracks. An electric trolley car, however, would plow right over you.
There were 51 deaths in 1893 and 34 in 1894. By the time 1895 rolled around, Brooklyn had earned itself a reputation, and the newspaper writers across the country bestowed a new title on the city’s baseball team. The first use of the team name Trolley Dodgers actually popped up in print over a hundred miles away from Brooklyn. From The Scranton Tribune on May 11, 1865:
The “Rainmakers” and the “Trolley Dodgers” are the latest terms used by base ball writers to designate the Phillies and Brooklyns respectively.
The name stuck. Soon many newspapers were referring to Brooklyn’s baseball team as the Trolley Dodgers. One magazine called it a “playful descriptive term,” though some might think it somewhat derisive towards Brooklynites. Inevitably, however, the city—which became a borough of New York City in 1897—embraced the term."