The pendulum has swung too far to one side
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I would be the first to agree that offensive comments made in a joking manner concerning individuals or different ethnic groups went far beyond acceptability in past times.
I’m convinced that Don Rickles, Andrew Dice Clay, Richard Pryor and George Carlin are just a few comedians who would not be successful today. Although I admit that Carlin’s Hippy Dippy Weatherman is hysterical, especially when he explains that “radar is showing a nor’easter headed to the mid-Atlantic states, but radar is also picking up a squadron of Russian MiGs, so one should not sweat the weather.” Carlin also had many famous quotes, such as: “The reason I talk to myself is because I’m the only one whose answers I accept.” However, Carlin’s “Seven words you can never say on television” routine led to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that gave the FCC the right to determine when to censor radio and TV broadcasts.
The bottom line is embracing diversity and showing respect to everyone makes this a better world in which to live. We are still not there, but we understand that we need to get there and it won’t happen overnight. As the saying goes, “Rome wasn’t built in a day.”
However, sometimes the pendulum swings too far to one side.
As a graduate of the University of Notre Dame, I was shocked to find out that the Fighting Irish leprechaun was voted one of the most offensive mascots in American collegiate sports. According to a report in The Irish Post, a survey this year conducted by Quality Logo Products found the leprechaun was the fourth most offensive mascot in the U.S. behind three that depict Native American characters. Rightly so, university officials defended the logo, arguing it is a “celebration of genuine Irish heritage” rather than anything more threatening or disturbing.
University officials stated in the report that they chose the symbol to emphasize the resilience of the Irish people. They also stated that “in both upraised fists of the leprechaun mascot and the use of the word fighting, the intent was to recognize the determination of the Irish people and symbolically, the university’s athletes.”
At Notre Dame, the university stated, the Irish have been an integral part of the school since its beginning and played a key role in adopting the name. “Our symbols stand as celebratory representations of a genuine Irish heritage at Notre Dame,” the university stated in the report, “a heritage that we regard with respect, loyalty and affection."
It was in 1927 that the Fighting Irish became Notre Dame’s official nickname under the direction of the university’s president, the Rev. Matthew Walsh, who was of Irish descent. Several fans initially used it as a derogatory term, as many of Notre Dame’s athletes were Irish at the start of the 20th century. However, Father Walsh decided to change the association and meshed it into the team and the university’s identity.
In 2020 in the aftermath of a number of sports franchises caving into public outrage and changing their Native American-based names and logos, Notre Dame came under pressure to retire its century-old mascot. The Cleveland Indians announced that their baseball team would be known as the Guardians, whereas Washington’s professional football team distanced itself from the Redskins in 2014 and officially dropped the title in 2020. I agree with university officials who commented that there really was no comparison between Notre Dame’s nickname and mascot and the Indian and warrior names of mascots used by other institutions, such as the NFL teams mentioned above.
I realize this commentary has nothing to do with any area of oncology that I usually emphasize. Nevertheless, the University of Notre Dame is one of the most successful college programs, not just in football. More importantly for me, its athletes receive their degrees and graduate. This is more important to me than another national championship in any sport. However, like my two Irish brothers-in-law, we will continue to root for the Fighting Irish, leprechaun and all. I would imagine that the next news flash is that there is no such thing as leprechauns guarding pots of gold at the end of the rainbow.
Stay safe.
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Nicholas J. Petrelli, MD, FACS, is Bank of America endowed medical director of ChristianaCare’s Helen F. Graham Cancer Center & Research Institute and associate director of translational research at Wistar Cancer Institute. He also serves as Associate Editor of Surgical Oncology for HemOnc Today. He can be reached at npetrelli@christianacare.org.
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The Irish Post. Notre Dame Fighting Irish leprechaun mascot voted one of most ‘offensive’ in US sports. Available at: https://www.irishpost.com/news/notre-dame-fighting-irish-leprechaun-mascot-voted-one-of-most-offensive-in-us-sports-219356. Accessed Oct. 13, 2021.
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