Benson High School is holdout w/ Indian-themed name

No movement toward changing this?

The Benson Braves ended our MACA baseball season in 2021. The score was 4-3 as the Braves prevailed over the Tigers on May 29. According to "Minnesota Scores," this game was played at Grove City. As it was a first-round game, I don't see why it could not have been played at Morris or Benson. 

It was a disappointing end to the Tigers' season as we had fashioned a record over .500. With the loss at the end, the orange and black finished at 12-9. 

In the Benson game "we just weren't hitting," commented Dan Sayles, father of coach Kirby. I have some interaction with good ol' Dan at DeToy's Restaurant occasionally. I enjoy that he's a "fan" of my musical compositions. He remembers me from my halcyon days as newspaper journalist. 

We must remember that in the days before the Internet, and in the early years of the new phenomenon, being a newspaper writer made you an important person. Yes, even influential to a degree. Today everyone is empowered to communicate with a large number of people. The new way is a blessing in many ways though not 100 percent. For example, "vaccine deniers" can get their views out there to a disturbing degree. 

We all want to get over the virus, don't we? Will the deniers keep the chance alive for a resurgence of the virus, probably the Delta or some other new strain, this fall? 

 

Matter of contention

I bring up the final Tiger baseball game of 2021 mainly to note the nickname of the opposing team. Yes, you know what I'm getting at I'm sure. 

Benson has surprisingly been out of the controversy spotlight with its nickname and logo. One wonders if the school has been trying to sell its nickname as a universal "warrior" type of image, rather than as one connected to Native Americans. Some quick research shows this evidently is not the case, as Benson has a symbol with a Native American feather. 

By current standards this crosses the line. I would suggest that in the Twin Cities, this would be an impossible sell now. As a quiet rural outstate community, maybe Benson has been immune because we're just so, well, quiet and outstate. Us rural people might be expected to use a nickname in a benign way because surely, us rural Minnesotans are so sweet and gentle, right? Well, we seem to talk that way according to the "Minnesota nice" template as exploited by the movies "Fargo" and "North Country." 

How many people do you know who really talk in a sing-songy way, a way that Hollywood would imply is ignorance? Well, that's Hollywood. We are not all obsessed with how a particular hockey team is doing in winter. 

We are in fact rabid about our high school sports. A friend of mine jokes that high school sports is the No. 1 reason for the existence of outstate high schools. Sometimes I'm not sure if that's exaggeration. 

But anyway, Benson has up to now continued with its ageless "Braves" nickname and symbol. I have heard barely a ripple of talk about it. Increasingly I find that strange. I wonder if the school board there has even authorized a study into the soundness of continuing this way. 

 

Trend across the USA

Hey all you Benson people: here's a July 9 headline from "The Hill" website: "Bans on Native American mascots pick up after Washington football team name change." And the first sentence: "State legislators are advancing measures meant to bar public schools from using Native American mascots in the wake of a spotlight case by the Washington football team's decision to drop its derogatory former name." To review, it was "Redskins." 

Colorado and Nevada acted last month to bar the Native American mascots. These actions followed Washington state. 

Connecticut and Massachusetts - whew, tough to type those state names - have measures pending for later this year. Before this year, Maine was the only state to have taken such action. 

You're probably aware that the debate over this has gone on a long time, and swirled in a most uncomfortable way at University of North Dakota where "Fighting Sioux" once held forth. 

After all the venting and strong emotions, I'll bet any school is able to get over this thing pretty quickly. Who really cares what a school's sports nickname is? Why should it matter so much? I would suggest to Benson High School: why not the "Benson Bobcats?" There's alliteration there.

No inhibitions about the nickname, it appears (benson public schools ISD #777 site)

 

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com