Research Mentor(s)
Tsunokai, Glenn
Description
In November 2015, Western Washington University cancelled classes when a debate over changing the school’s mascot—an identifiably White Viking—resulted in hate speech and threats toward students of color. While some students held that the mascot could be offensive to non-White students who are unrepresented by the symbol of a White male, others felt the debate to be trivial. This event raises the question of how the university’s White mascot impacts its students. Scholars have recently begun to study views regarding Native American mascots, however there is an empirical gap concerning how mascots of other identifiable racial/ethnic groups are perceived. This research aims to bring awareness to how racialized mascots may impact students of different racial/ethnic groups by examining perceptions of the White mascot, Victor E. Viking. The present study examines the relationship between students’ racial identity and perceptions of an identifiably White university mascot. Additionally, campus involvement and views of Whites as an ethnic group are examined. I hypothesize that students of color will be more willing to change the university’s mascot, in addition to feeling less connected to the mascot. Logistic regression analysis revealed that White students exhibited greater odds of wanting to change the mascot in comparison to their non-White counterparts. However, students who are more involved in campus activities had greater odds of wanting to keep the university’s mascot. These results demonstrate the nuanced perceptions of White racialized mascots. Though Whites as a group are more open to changing the mascot, individual differences (such as campus involvement) also influence whether a student believes Western Washington University’s mascot should be changed.
Document Type
Event
Start Date
17-5-2018 12:00 PM
End Date
17-5-2018 3:00 PM
Department
Sociology
Genre/Form
student projects, posters
Subjects – Topical (LCSH)
Indians of North America--Civil rights; Indians of North America--Ethnic identity; African-Americans--Ethnic identity; Racism; African-Americans--Civil rights
Subjects – Names (LCNAF)
Western Washington University--Mascots
Geographic Coverage
Bellingham (Wash.)--Race relation
Type
Image
Keywords
Mascots, Race, Ethnicity
Rights
Copying of this document in whole or in part is allowable only for scholarly purposes. It is understood, however, that any copying or publication of this document for commercial purposes, or for financial gain, shall not be allowed without the author’s written permission.
Language
English
Format
application/pdf
Included in
Student perceptions of a White university mascot
In November 2015, Western Washington University cancelled classes when a debate over changing the school’s mascot—an identifiably White Viking—resulted in hate speech and threats toward students of color. While some students held that the mascot could be offensive to non-White students who are unrepresented by the symbol of a White male, others felt the debate to be trivial. This event raises the question of how the university’s White mascot impacts its students. Scholars have recently begun to study views regarding Native American mascots, however there is an empirical gap concerning how mascots of other identifiable racial/ethnic groups are perceived. This research aims to bring awareness to how racialized mascots may impact students of different racial/ethnic groups by examining perceptions of the White mascot, Victor E. Viking. The present study examines the relationship between students’ racial identity and perceptions of an identifiably White university mascot. Additionally, campus involvement and views of Whites as an ethnic group are examined. I hypothesize that students of color will be more willing to change the university’s mascot, in addition to feeling less connected to the mascot. Logistic regression analysis revealed that White students exhibited greater odds of wanting to change the mascot in comparison to their non-White counterparts. However, students who are more involved in campus activities had greater odds of wanting to keep the university’s mascot. These results demonstrate the nuanced perceptions of White racialized mascots. Though Whites as a group are more open to changing the mascot, individual differences (such as campus involvement) also influence whether a student believes Western Washington University’s mascot should be changed.