Posted on 02/16/2021 5:13:40 PM PST by nickcarraway
A resolution recognizing the harms of using Native American mascots in Utah public schools and encouraging their retirement was struck down by the Utah House of Representatives on Tuesday.
HCR3 failed on a 45-27 vote, with all nays supplied by Republicans even though some of the GOP joined Democrats to vote in favor of it.
Rep. Elizabeth Weight, D-West Valley City, urged her fellow lawmakers to support the nonbinding resolution, arguing that Native American mascots "often are disrespected." Weight, a retired school teacher, said in her talks with leaders of Utah tribes, she said many told her, "It's time, time for people to consider retiring those mascots."
Her resolution would have also encouraged the Utah State Board of Education, school districts and charter schools to provide instruction in Native American culture and history.
But lawmakers including Rep. Phil Lyman, R-Blanding, opposed the bill. Lyman argued "there's not a consensus" on the resolution among the Native American community. He said some appreciate their ancestral symbols being remembered. He argued those symbols are a "great source of pride" for many, and the Utah Legislature should allow them to be celebrated "rather than erasing those things."
House Majority Leader Francis Gibson, R-Mapleton, also argued against the bill, questioning why it's targeted only at K-12 public schools, and not colleges or universities.
Weight pointed out the University of Utah's Ute mascot is permitted through a contract with the Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation, so she said that's a "pretty different situation." But Gibson questioned why that was acceptable, but not a mascot or a name that's "adopted" by a local community or high school.
"What about animals that are mascots in schools?" Gibson said. "Should we have PETA arguing for the protection of that as well? I'm not trying to say to compare the two directly, but it's the concept of how we get a name of a mascot. I just think that if we're going to adopt this (resolution), we should probably look at all of the universities .... Let's just be consistent with that argument."
If they used ascots, the Brits would complain about cultural appropriations.
Why does Utah have a problem with scarves?
I didn’t know Native Americans wore ascots... oh, wait. never mind. ;-)
With ONE exception, sport team names and mascots are of things we fear, admire, or deeply respect.
If this purge doesn’t wake the beast within, we are doomed to a life of less than mediocrity.
I graduated from Central Michigan, the Chippewas, and we proudly continue with that namesake.
As opposed the Eastern Michigan Hurons that whimped out and became the falcons.
The Names & Mascots of the tribes is the only reason anyone would know anything about these people.
They are a defeated people whom we have been nice enough to not only care for with generous welfare benefits, we also have shown great respect to their , let’s face it, stone age culture, through the use of their names & images as strong fighters.
In reality, if they were better fighters, they may have won the wars. They didn’t, they lost, badly. So they can STFU already!
Some of this is tongue-in-cheek!
The Utes thank you!
Twenty years from now, we’ll all be like Judge Chamberlain: “Ute? What’s a ‘Ute’?”
It was a real campaign...
Let’s compare who’s more in touch with the native population in Utah:
Wright, West Valley (SL County)mostly white; or Lyman, Blanding (South Eastern Utah) where large populations and/or reservations are located & a good # of his constituency. My vote is for Lyman. Dems think they know everything by talking to a handful of mostly white ppl.
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