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Show 10- - OPINIONS 11 THE VOICE OF DIXIE STATE COLLEGE OF UTAH DIXIE SUN WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 13, stars and bars (confederate flag) and its associated symbols (the colors: red and gray, the T War. The "Rebel") have become td some extent symbols of the "Old South' and white supremacy. For this reason, throughout the South, schools and towns that bayonet-wieldin- Rodney, Red Bull butt heads BY CRAIG BLAKE Sun Opinion Editor Dixie It seems to me that Dixie State College administration is on a mission to eliminate Dixie State College from being Dixie State College. OK, now take a deep breath and say it three times fast All right, wipe that goofy smile off your race, this is serious business. Maybe we should consider shortening Dixie State College's title so that it will fit more effectively in the first sentence of newspaper columns, you know, just in case the need arises. Then again, lets be careful what we wish for So maybe DSC administrators didnt actually say they were on that specific mission, but in the past 10 years, the college has systematically lost almost every icon that could connect it to its roots. First it lost its flag, then it lost its colors, and now it is trying to shake its mascot. Poor Rodney the Rebel is about to get mowed over by Red the Rebel. The only problem is that Red isn't a Rebel at all; he is in fact a bull, a red one... get it, 'red-bull"re bul? Didn't catch that one? OK, never mind. Anyway, he already sounds like a shady character to me. No, we will not all soon be known as the Dixie State College Red Bulls. Theoretically Red would only be present at games to cheer on the teams, do stunts, maybe make balloon animals, stuff like that. So, big deal right? So what? Who cares whether the fellow running around on the field is dressed up like a rebel or a red bull? Why is this a big deal? Because when you start removing icons of an institution, you begin removing peoples attachment to that institution. DSC is not the same school it was 10 years ago and that's a good thing. Progress is good. It is a growing school, more students than ever, more programs than ever, implepromenting grams. These are all good things, but en route to instibecoming a first-rattution, DSC is trying to forget who it is, prompting me to copy and paste lines that may or may not be from a movie about a misguided lion, and then cleverly change the names so no one can identify it: Rodney the Rebel: Dixie, you have forgotten me. four-yea- r e Dixie: No. How could I? Rodney the Rebel: You have forgotten who you are and so have forgotten me. Look inside yourself, Dixie. You are more than what you have become. You must take your place in the Circle of Life. Dixie: How can I go back? I'm not who I used to be. Rodney the Rebel: Remember who you are. You are my son and the one true king. Remember..,. So maybe that was a little corny, and maybe most of the last line didnt apply, but you get the point. When I come back to St. George 10 years from now, Im gong to want to see the D" lit up at night. Im going to want to see the high school Dixie Rock and the red mountains in general. I'm going to want to see the sign that says, Dixie State College: Home of the Rebels. Why will I want to see all of these things? Because all of these things are icons that make this school what it is to me. What we are doing today is destroying, one by one, the icons of the last generation of Dixie students. They come back to their old school and they dont recognize the college that they went to, and not in a good, Youre such a big kid now, sort of way. This doesnt just mean shattered memories and hurt feelings; it means less attachment to the symbols of their school, and potentially less donations. Of course the reason that DSC is attempting to change up most of its icons is in a noble effort to be more politically correct. Youve probably already figured out that The Rebels is what the Confederate army was nicknamed in the Civil SI DIXIE g used the confederate flag as its symbol have been forced to change. Rightly so; emotions tied to those symbols in that area still strike raw nerves. But I think its time for a history lesson. St. George was first settled by Mormons who were sent to the south to grow cotton as evidenced by the old cotton mill in Washington City (now a nursery and also an important icon of the community). Because of persecution in Missouri and Illinois, they left the United States and had essentially formed their own territory within, what was then, Mexican territory. The cotton industry in St. George never became much of a growing concern, but because of its warm climate and the attempt to grow cotton, the area began to take on the nickname, "Utah's Dixie," which eventually led to the school's name. This led to things like the adoption of the confederate flag, and the Rebel as the mascot. In reality though, there are no connections between DSC and the confederate states or their ideology. I mean, we just came here to grow some cotton. So why are we taking out all this confederate-generateanger out on Rodney? Why not just make a better Rodney mascot suit so that we could actually have a rebel on the field? The fact is that we are known as the Dixie State College Rebels. If we change the mascot at the games, we will still be known as the Dixie State College Rebels. So barring a complete revamp of the colleges name, we arent going to escape that aspect, and we shouldnt want to. Would it not be shock if one day Notre Dame University announced that it was going to replace the Irishman mascot with a big, green elephant? What if USC announced that it was ditching Tommy the Trojan on the field and replacing him with a shiny, brass garden gnome because he was too closely d Stanton Roseman, Editor Ch. Adv in mat Craig Blake, Opinion Brad Piothow, Sports you in a Edu Edu Lora Hudson, AAE Educ Maisie Metcalf, NewsPhoto Wendi Epps, Advertising Mar. som ihe by g and Michelle Nelson Kailee Heger Kate Chapman Tiera Oliver Nate Law Margaret Prevosi Jonathan Lisonbee Phil Walker Rhiannon Bent, HOWTO tne bad ihe Wh obic acid am 786 Adviser guy: l REACH Sr O' Dixie State College Vfus clos. DIXIE SUN com shot one anyt real North Plaza Building, Roor 225 South 700 East St. George, UT 84770 Phone (435) Fax (435) 15 m Yeal true 9 dixiesundixie.edu http:sundixie.edu Jobs Wag The DIXIE SUN distributed each Wednoads Fail and Spring e roasters as a publication o( College, Arts. Letters and Sciences, and Du College Student Activtuee. The unsigned page represents the position of Dli determined by its editorial board Otherwise and opinions expressed in DLX1E SUN are writers and do not necessarily refie opinions of DIXIF SUN or any entity of the an ii aske futui care associated with a brar condoms? You would never, ev Ian t tutio getti want Whe plac help mom see these schools rem these symbols because they are icons to the p pie attending each pa: lar university. There i Peer be an outrage. Yoi Granted, Dixie isn't blata Notre Dame, but Dixie the E one of the top smaller Offic leges in the country, a appo has a distinct identity lump is risking extinction. woub Not to mention, the Starl son the Red Bull in the first pla Chat because it sounded kir all p -- r like Rebel. So what that we trying to do? Are ' hand trying to think up clev diffic combinations of word word sound kind of like the out fi word we dont want to tongi associated with, or an duml easing the pain for Uriru replacement? It would be too eas; Thi, cha little bit of time to ward to the school mascot the g Red Bulls, said Jake r many DSC student body pre Pants dent. As students, we area nt want to lose the Rf Why -- identity. think agenc see RODNEY page - Veve. Sales Comi |