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I had no idea that Denver University had a controversy with its mascot, but apparently it has been an issue since they jumped to D1 15 years ago. Did you know that a Pioneer is racist? Read the story for more details.
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"Denver Boone" was created in 1968 with help from Disney. A student competition to name the mascot resulted in the name "Denver Boone" as a play off of Daniel Boone. Growing up as a kid in the 60's and 70's, I remember watching Disney's TV show staring Fess Parker, and I have no memories of anything racist about the character or the show. My parents always hoped that I'd grow up with values like Fess Parker's character.
However, former AD Dianne Murphy replaced the Pioneer mascot in place of a red bird named "Ruckus". The bird never caught on and athletes and alumni alike unofficially brought back the Pioneer mascot and image. Officially, the university has not had a mascot since the spring of 2007. However, some alumni ressurected "Denver" and purchased a mascot costume for $4,800 in 2009.
In March of this year, Chancellor Robert Coombe announced that a new mascot will be selected and the finalist are: elk, jackalope, and mountaineer. The jackalope is mildly creative and could cause some confusion when they start abbreviating their name to Jacks. What I find interesting is that they are considering - Mountaineer. Isn't a mountaineer virtually the same as a pioneer in the aspect of "Denver Boone"? West Virginia is one of nine schools that use the Mountaineer name and their mascot looks like Daniel Boone. They've had a Mountain Honorary Society select a Mountaineer from the student body since 1936. Finalists are decided based on outstanding character and enthusiasm. I'm sure that outstanding character has nothing to do with being racist. The winner actually recieves free tuition for their commitment.
So why all the fuss? Oh yeah, the student government passed a resolution to remove funding for anything related to the "Denver Boone" image.
For what its worth, DU still uses the Pioneer name in relationship to their web page and other marketing. http://www.denverpioneers.com/
I'm trying to figure out why people in Grand Forks and Denver are so intrigued with creating controversies with mascots. (In addition, I don't find anything offensive with the 605 name for a university). Makes me love my Jackrabbit even more!
"Denver Boone" was created in 1968 with help from Disney. A student competition to name the mascot resulted in the name "Denver Boone" as a play off of Daniel Boone. Growing up as a kid in the 60's and 70's, I remember watching Disney's TV show staring Fess Parker, and I have no memories of anything racist about the character or the show. My parents always hoped that I'd grow up with values like Fess Parker's character.
However, former AD Dianne Murphy replaced the Pioneer mascot in place of a red bird named "Ruckus". The bird never caught on and athletes and alumni alike unofficially brought back the Pioneer mascot and image. Officially, the university has not had a mascot since the spring of 2007. However, some alumni ressurected "Denver" and purchased a mascot costume for $4,800 in 2009.
In March of this year, Chancellor Robert Coombe announced that a new mascot will be selected and the finalist are: elk, jackalope, and mountaineer. The jackalope is mildly creative and could cause some confusion when they start abbreviating their name to Jacks. What I find interesting is that they are considering - Mountaineer. Isn't a mountaineer virtually the same as a pioneer in the aspect of "Denver Boone"? West Virginia is one of nine schools that use the Mountaineer name and their mascot looks like Daniel Boone. They've had a Mountain Honorary Society select a Mountaineer from the student body since 1936. Finalists are decided based on outstanding character and enthusiasm. I'm sure that outstanding character has nothing to do with being racist. The winner actually recieves free tuition for their commitment.
So why all the fuss? Oh yeah, the student government passed a resolution to remove funding for anything related to the "Denver Boone" image.
For what its worth, DU still uses the Pioneer name in relationship to their web page and other marketing. http://www.denverpioneers.com/
I'm trying to figure out why people in Grand Forks and Denver are so intrigued with creating controversies with mascots. (In addition, I don't find anything offensive with the 605 name for a university). Makes me love my Jackrabbit even more!
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