The website FiveThiryEight, well-known for applying numerical and/or stasticial methods to all sorts of questions, recently turned its analytic eye on the distribution of high-school mascots named after Native Americans. The author of this piece began by searching an online database of mascots for terms denoting Native Americans, such as
Braves, Chiefs, Indians, Orangemen, Raiders, Redmen, Reds, Redskins, Savages, Squaws, Tribe and Warriors
and in so doing unwittingly helped answer the question “What is the value of a non-STEM degree?” by demonstrating that some knowledge of European history can prevent you from embarrassing yourself in public.
What does John Boehner think about Orangemen? Does he feel insulted?Report
Ha!
Though one wonders if they shout “Ulster will fight and Ulster will be right” at Syracuse games. I doubt it.Report
Though wiki says that the original mascot was a Native American Warrior and maybe it is not a reference to the House of Orange:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_the_OrangeReport
http://archives.syr.edu/history/orange.htmlReport
TL/DR version: Sometimes the reason for a color is that it’s not other colors.Report
I also wouldn’t bet on Reds having an exclusively Native American connotation.Report
Yeah, the Cincinnati team used to be the Red Stockings, and I think they just shortened it.Report
Relatively few high school football teams are communists.Report
If I remember when I skimmed that article, it even mentioned a school that had a non-Native American derived nickname (Redmen, maybe?) but which they counted anyway.
I’m also not sure that Warriors necessarily applies exclusively to Native Americans. I recognize that it does in many contexts but I also think there is ample evidence of it used with a variety of other connotations.
FiveThirtyEight is awfully sloppy.Report
Yeah, the iconography matters in cases of ambiguity. It’s not clear that orange should be considered ambiguous.Report
Golf clap for @mike-schilling
That one liner was perfectly set up and beautifully executed.Report
in so doing unwittingly helped answer the question “What is the value of a non-STEM degree?” by demonstrating that some knowledge of European history can prevent you from embarrassing yourself in public.
Not really. Someone with a degree in history is just as likely to embarrass himself in public, for lack of STEM-related knowledge.Report
“Look at that moron. He thinks tangent is an even function!”Report