“Big” controversy at the University of Calgary: Some intramural sports teams have come up with catchy handles for their squads … but they’ve irritated some students who think the team names contribute to campus “rape culture.”
As a result, a student committee was “given the job of policing the hundreds of teams.” It seems teams will no longer will permitted to come up with their own monikers.
Some of the “offensive” squads were called “Cunning Stunts,” “Frigid Whore,” “Let Me See Your TDs,” “Just The Tip” and “Muffin Stuffers.”
Now, the university says it will highlight the potentially offensive names and send them to the elected student advisory board, which can nix anything offside.
“There’s never been any process like that in place in the university,” said Don McSwiney, a spokesman for the kinesiology faculty.
“We don’t actually believe we’re [students’] parents and it is a bit of a slippery slope. These are adults that go to this institution and for the most part the feeling has always been that these people can govern themselves by the rule of society.”
When students first complained in October, he said, the administration was moved by the argument the sexist team names could discourage some from participating in intramural sports.
“Changing the name should not diminish your ability to enjoy competition. But it will make it easier for others to enjoy it in the spirit of inclusiveness,” he said.
In addition, students themselves will decide what’s acceptable.
Lexi Narowski, the arts representative on the student union, said she went to the university administration after several students approached her with their concerns.
“Some of the names had perpetrated rape culture, I guess you could say,” she said.
“In an academic environment where students are supposed to be progressing and learning about this — women’s’ studies are taught here — this is so inappropriate.”
A Facebook group asking the university to allow all team names has been set up and has (at the time of the article) the support of 300 people.
“Censorship of thought and speech is unacceptable in a free society such as ours. We believe you can say what you want. And it is your right to offend or be offended,” the group says.
It added that team names “were being dismissed seemingly arbitrarily,” based on “the ever subjective emotional state of the reader.”
An intramural basketball team on which I played my college sophomore year was called “Linguine and Red Clam” (after my roommate’s favorite dish). Hopefully that didn’t offend any Italians.
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