Apparently, there's some huge controversy going on about completely eradicating the University of Mississippi's mascot, Colonel Reb. This mascot was "retired" in 2003 (which I didn't know about at all, nor do I know exactly what this retirement consisted of), but now the administration wants to destroy all references and paraphernalia depicting his likeness.
They're talking about replacing him with...*snicker* Admiral Akbar from the Star Wars franchise. He's the thing that looks like a cross between a slug, a catfish, and a de-shelled crawfish.
My dominant opinion on this topic is, it's a freakin college mascot! Who cares?? I'm not offended when I see a caricature of an old white man in a grey suit prancing around a football field.
As far my feelings about students and fans waving Rebel flags (beloved symbol of the Ku Klux Klan) and shouting, "The South will rise again" after the fight song...well, that's another can of worms for another day.
The biggest argument in the defense of Col. Reb is the whole "Heritage, not hate" thing. And you know what? I can agree with it to a certain extent. If you're tracing your family tree, and your great-great-great-grandfather was a soldier in the Confederate army who was killed in the line of duty, I don't think you should be made to feel ashamed of it. But there is a difference in having a sense of pride about your family history as opposed to going around talking about, "My great (x4) grandpappy owned a passel of slaves back in the Ol South!" (A bit of an exaggeration, but you get my point). Shoot, if I were white, I'd feel some kind of way if a black person said they were descended from Nat Turner and went around bragging about how many whiteys he killed during that particular slave revolt. I'm just saying...
Ok, let me get back on track now...
My point is, I'm willing to bet that there are a number of truly racist things happening at Ole Miss that the administration should be focusing on. Things that can make a tangible difference in the educational experience of a black student at the University of Mississippi. I get offended when I hear of a professor giving black students trouble in the classroom (blatantly or subtly). Or when there is a notable absence of qualified professors of color. Or when minority organizations don't have the same privileges as other orgs. I'm not worried about some stupid mascot that people probably don't even pay attention to during a football game.
