The Massacre at Regiopolis

Regiopolis School Crest. Is it discriminatory that it's still kind of red?

Regiopolis-Notre Dame High School, in Kingston Ontario, has a long and fabled history. It began as Canada’s first English Catholic High School. In 1886, it was actually granted university status, and theoretically still has the legal authority to award degrees. Its sports teams long competed as the Regiopolis Redskins. Then in 1988, someone decided this name was culturally insensitive. Goodbye to over a century of history and tradition.

The obvious and original choice then was to rename the teams the “Regiopolis Rams,” preserving the alliteration. But this was rejected as sexist: Rams are male.

So they are now, for no particular reason, the “Regiopolis Panthers.”

This pretty well tells you what you need to know about Kingston.

First question: how come it is discriminating against Indians to name your teams after them, but discriminating in favour of males to name your team after them?

Call the Human Rights Commission! Aren't Rogers employees an identifiable group?

Second question: how come, if it is insulting to name your sports team after someone, how come Air Canada is not suing over the name of the Air Canada Centre in Toronto? How come Rogers Cable is not suing over the name of the Rogers Centre? In Kingston, how come K-Rock Radio is not protesting the name of the K-Rock Centre, where the Kingston Frontenacs play?

Of course, others have noticed the absurdity of protesting against sports teams named after Indians when nobody seems to get upset about the Minnesota Vikings or the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

“There are no two ways about it;” however, writes a correspondent for Yahoo Sports. “The name [Redskins] is derogatory. A sports team that uses such a name responsible for the personal struggles of a group of strangers, or a people, [sic—I don’t understand what he’s trying to say either] but names such as Redskins, Braves or Indians can reaffirm the sense of powerlessness many Aboriginals encounter daily. It also is different from other nicknames which represent a people such as Patriots or Vikings, because it involves co-opting someone else's culture and heritage.”

Funny... you don't look Irish.

That’s the claim, then? It is “co-opting” someone else’s heritage? And how many players on the Notre Dame squad do you suppose are actually Irish? Or on the Minnesota squad Swedish? Or on the Boston Celtics Celtic? Or on the Toronto Argonauts Greek? Or on the Ottawa Senators Roman? Or on the Gananoque Trojans Trojan?

And does the writer really want to make the claim that native North Americans have made no contribution to Canadian culture? Should he presume that no Regiopolis players have native heritage? Isn’t that a classically prejudiced assumption?

But that’s Kingston. Like Toronto, only more so.