Originally Posted at Free Market Shooter; Authored by Paul McShea
During a debate on the Cleveland Indians’ decision to phase out their mascot of “Chief Wahoo” beginning in the 2019 season, ESPN First Take host Max Kellerman expanded the debate to the University of Notre Dame and its use of the name “Fighting Irish”:
“Many Irish-Americans are not offended, but many are. And should that also change? The answer is yes, unequivocally yes,” Kellerman said. “Pernicious, negative stereotypes of marginalized people that offend even some among them should be changed. It’s not that hard.”
Kellerman is wrong that the name “Fighting Irish” is pernicious – that is, harmful, or derogatory. The University of Notre Dame’s football website describes several different tales as to how the athletic program came up with the term Fighting Irish. Among them, the most accepted theory:
The most generally accepted explanation is that the press coined the nickname as a characterization of Notre Dame athletic teams, their never-say-die fighting spirit and the Irish qualities of grit, determination and tenacity. The term likely began as an abusive expression tauntingly directed toward the athletes from the small, private, Catholic institution. Notre Dame alumnus Francis Wallace popularized it in his New York Daily News columns in the 1920s.
The term Fighting Irish is a testament and homage to teams of years past who battled and persevered when the University was but a tiny, Catholic school in the middle of the Protestant Midwest. It is not a negative stereotype of Irish culture, but a celebration of how the university has grown to be one of the most respected institutions of higher education in the world.
An apocryphal tale related by a Notre Dame alumnus recalled that the name Fighting Irish came about due to the university being attacked by a local Indiana chapter of the Ku Klux Klan in 1924. While the term had already been in use before the incident, the resilience of the students in fighting off a Klan rally only solidified the appropriateness of the term.
No matter which way you look at it, the name Fighting Irish is a celebratory term used to honor the toughness of their student-athletes, its rise to international prominence in education, and its Irish-Catholic roots.
Much like how Stephen Colbert would declare any district in his “Better Know a District” segment “the fighting (Congressional district number),” the term Fighting Irish is simply a commemoration of Notre Dame’s history, and is not in the least bit racist or inflammatory.
I guess this guy doesn’t get the difference between a white guy naming his team the Indians, and a monicker chosen by a lot of Irish Catholics themselves. He is right about the name in that it undoubtedly stems from the 19th century stereotype of the Irish as a bunch drunken brawlers, which is only party true. In fact, the Fighting Irish is the only team name that is somewhat pejorative; what reasonable person thinks that naming a team the Braves or Chiefs or Indians is an insult? The thing is, the Irish are not normal, and would pick an insulting name out of sheer contrariness. And if anyone tries to change it, there is going to be trouble.
Max Kellerman is a fucking moron. So there’s that.
Ex Senator Jim Webb might have an opinion on the term.
Born Fighting
“It is a personal view of the Scots-Irish in the United States. Webb maintains that Scots-Irish attitudes form the bedrock of American society, especially among the working class. Writing of the author in The New York Review of Books, Elizabeth Drew notes he is a “warrior-intellectual.” [1]”https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Born_Fighting
Fuck all those special snowflakes. When I was young they had retards and Indians. People took offense to those terms and they had to be changed. Then more snowflakes became offended by the new names. Thus they were changed again. Not even sure what they are called now and personally don’t give a fuck. I’m sure before I die they will be called retards and Indians again.
What a waste of fuckin time being offended by everyone and everything.
Get on with the important things, life is short!
Fucking Dartmouth changed its team name to “The Green” (whatever THAT is) from “The Indians”.
Missing from the discussion is the fact that the original FOUNDING charter of the institution created a college “for the education and instruction of Youth of the Indian Tribes in this Land”, in other words, an Indian School.
I guess I can see that folks don’t like the Indians grinning caricature, but damn, they didn’t name the team the Indians to make fun of them. They chose that name because it sounds like a team that will be tough to beat and put up a fight. The damn name is a compliment. Same with Redskins. Fuck all these thin-skinned politically correct weenies.
I bet actual lions, tigers and bears would be proud to know their are many college and professional teams named after them. Fucking PC snowflakes should be eaten by large carnivores as penance for being so stupid.
(((Kellerman))). Shocking!!!