|
cookie
Location: in the backwoods
|
This may have been posted before, and if so I apologize.
Frisco, a small town that became a suburb of Dallas, was known for years as the "Fightin' Coons." It was changed last year to Racoons, to prevent its interpretation as racially insensitive. The following was an article at the time, but you can't link to Dallas Morning News archives, or I can't fugure out how to.
Quote:
"A mascot by any other name: Some say label has become insensitive
02/17/2002
By CONNIE PILOTO / The Dallas Morning News
FRISCO – There were few hurt feelings back in 1924, when folks in Frisco made a boy's pet their high-school mascot and called their teams the Fighting Coons.
The idea was a sentimental hit, the story goes, after the boy stood up nervously at a town hall meeting, clutching his pet raccoon, to suggest the name. Longtime residents say questions of race never entered anyone's mind.
"No one here attached any racial significance to the name 'coon,' " said Bob Warren, a former mayor and a 1938 Frisco High School graduate. "In those days, no one around here called a raccoon a raccoon. We called them 'coons."
Today, though, some residents in one of the state's fastest-growing cities say the name should be modified to Fighting Raccoons in the interest of racial sensitivity. As the school district moves in that direction, some who grew up with the tradition say they're proud of it and don't want it to fade.
"I feel fortunate that I grew up in an environment where the word 'coon' has nothing to do with race," said Jim Newman, a Frisco High graduate whose family owns the last working farm in town. "We were insulated from that."
A small group of parents says the name is racially offensive and hurtful and that the city can't stay insulated anymore.
"While Frisco was small, they had no reason to be concerned with that name, but now that it's booming and becoming more diverse, they need to address it," said resident Pete Campbell, who is black. "I knew that the people of Frisco did not mean any ill will with this name, but they must realize its potential dangers, considering the society and world we now live in."
Mr. Campbell, whose two sons play football at Frisco High, said the issue struck home for him when he saw other black children wearing T-shirts emblazoned with the name.
"That was the most disheartening thing," Mr. Campbell said. "A lot of the kids don't know what the name means, but the parents and grandparents do."
The Rev. Jason Branch, who is black, agrees. His son, a member of the Frisco basketball team, recently had fans of an opposing team yell the slur at him. After the game, Jason Jr. asked his parents what the word meant.
"We danced around the issue and tried not to get into the race issue," Mr. Branch said. "But he started asking more questions. It was real devastating to him."
The conflict, both sides say, is another of the fast-developing city's growing pains.
"This phenomenon of old versus new is happening in suburban communities throughout," said Edwin Darden, senior staff lawyer for the National School Boards Association. "As this happens, many communities are finding that integrating these new cultures and sensitivities is difficult."
Over the years, schools have changed the names of athletic teams after receiving complaints that some find the names demeaning. Over the last decade, universities, colleges and professional sports teams have come under fire from some for using American Indian names for teams and mascots.
Some colleges and universities – such as Stanford, Siena, Miami of Ohio, Dartmouth, and St. John's – have changed their names and mascots. Professional sports teams such as the Washington Redskins, the Cleveland Indians and Atlanta Braves also have been criticized.
Eleven years ago, students at Southwest High School in Fort Worth voted to call themselves Raiders instead of Rebels after black students and parents complained. South Grand Prairie High School officials are considering replacing the Warriors' mascot with one that a local American Indian group deems more culturally sensitive.
In Frisco, Mr. Campbell's concerns prompted him to approach school trustees and Superintendent Rick Reedy last year to recommend calling the mascot by its full name – Raccoon. He said he is frustrated by the district's gradual approach.
"We're trying to address it in a measured way," Dr. Reedy said. "We've invited everyone to use the many methods of communication we have to let us know what they feel. We're going to be real good listeners."
The district has started printing sports uniforms and building names without the Coon mascot name.
The football stadium's name was changed from Coon Memorial to FISD Memorial. All the teams, except for football, have jerseys without the Coons mascot name.
The football team uniforms are purchased every couple of years, and the name will be phased out when the district purchases new uniforms.
A city water tower welcoming visitors and designating the area "Home of the Fighting Coons" will be repainted once the district's second high school opens in 2003, Dr. Reedy said.
"As we add new high schools, there are going to be different mascots and this issue will become less and less significant to people."
Mr. Newman, for instance, has purchased T-shirts for his daughter saying, "Don't Rac my Coons."
"I have no shame in saying that I'm proud to be a Coon," Mr. Newman said. "I get a little bit tickled when I see someone get irate about it."
Some residents and school officials say most students have no idea that the word has been used as a racial slur.
"We have kids here who are white, black and Hispanic, and all go by the same name. They're proud to be Coons," said Russell Sutton, who has a yard sign in favor of not changing the name.
A 1969 Frisco graduate who was paralyzed from the neck down during a car accident 31 years ago painted and sold the wooden signs in favor of keeping the original mascot name.
Janice Watkins, 50, maneuvers a paintbrush in her mouth to create the neatly painted signs reading: "Don't Rac my Coons" alongside the face of a raccoon.
Ms. Watkins says it takes about five hours to complete each sign. She has painted 12.
"Frisco is my home," Ms. Watkins said. "FISD was my educator, and the Coon is my mascot.""
|
|