The Banana Slugs are angry. A few months after writing an article on school mascots, I got hold of this editorial response from the UCSC City on a Hill Press. While I assumed that the readership of the Spin consisted mostly of our student body, I was shocked to hear that readers across the country got wind of my “disagreeable mockery of UCSC’s friendly herbivore.” (Looks like someone has a news feed running for Banana Slug material …)
In my attempts to mourn the loss of Chief Illiniwek, mascot of the University of Illinois, I hurt the feelings of some peaceful slugs in the process.
Sure, the banana slug is great. In fact, I applaud such a diverse mascot. But seriously, what kind of athlete wants to be labeled as a slug? Shouting “Go Slugs Go” is almost as oxymoronic-sounding as our Fighting Quaker.
So while I personally would hate to be a Banana Slug, I’m glad that there are 14 UCSC athletic teams that are proud to represent such an animal. Unfortunately, UCSC is the only DIII school in the UC system and the least funded DIII school in the country, so maybe athletics aren’t a priority for its student body anyway.
I sympathize with the slugs, though. As much as I give our own mascot a hard time, deep down, I’m proud to be a Quaker and a student athlete here at Penn. On the starting line of the race, I doubt the girl standing next to me is thinking “Wow, I can beat this girl … she’s a Quaker,” and I doubt that opponents of the slugs are judging UCSC’s athletic abilities on who their mascot is. What it really comes down to is talent. The best team will win, no matter what mascot is on their jerseys.
Tags: Banana Slugs
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