Petition created against Stallions mascot for Lexington's new high school | Lexington Herald-Leader

 

BY VALARIE HONEYCUTT SPEARS AND JOSH MOORE

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A Lexington woman has created a petition on the change.org website against naming athletic teams and the school mascot at Lexington’s new Frederick Douglass High School the “Stallions.”

Diane Cahill said she created the petition, which will be delivered to Fayette Superintendent Manny Caulk, Principal Lester Diaz and Fayette County Public Schools board members, after the mascot was announced Monday. The petition said in part, that “it is inappropriate and sexist” that the mascot and name for the female sports teams is the Stallions.

The petition said the definition of a stallion is a male horse that has not been castrated, used for breeding or is slang for a powerful and virile man who has a lot of lovers.

“What message does this send to our daughters and granddaughters? Our sons and grandsons?” the petition said, “We demand that the name be changed to something more gender neutral and more indicative of Douglass’s brilliant mind, successful career and vision for equality and to send a message to all students that they are respected and valued.”

Frederick Douglass was an abolitionist and orator in the 1800s.

The high school on Winchester Road is set to open in the fall of 2017.

People complained about the mascot Stallions on social media, including Twitter and Facebook, and on comments on the petition.

Douglass Athletic Director Garry McPeek declined comment.

District spokeswoman Lisa Deffendall said Caulk was in a meeting Tuesday afternoon, but that she would pose to him questions raised by the petition.

Cahill told the Herald-Leader that enough people in the community were raising questions that she thought a petition was appropriate. The petition had 110 supporters by 4:30 p.m. Tuesday.

“How did they come up with this? The connotation of stallions pertaining to a girls’ softball team or basketball team just seemed really, really strange to me ... a male breeding horse,” Cahill said in an interview.

The nickname Stallions derives from the school’s property, once part of the famed Hamburg Place farm where racehorses, among them six Kentucky Derby winners, were sired. Hamburg Place is now a development on Lexington’s eastern edge.

“Using stallions as the mascot for the Frederick Douglass High School seems wrong on so many levels," Anita Courtney of Lexington told the Herald-Leader. “It leaves out 50 percent of the student population — girls — and is and not in keeping with the spirit of Title IX that promotes gender equity in sports. Calling the female athletes Lady Stallions doesn’t make any sense. We should get our horse terms right in the Bluegrass And even if it were an all-male high school, would we want to promote an image that has to do with breeding?“

Cahill said she hopes the petition will generate enough attention so that the district will “reassess this poor choice of a gender specific name.”

Mick Jeffries of Lexington said on the petition that he was signing it because he thought using the male gender of an animal was inappropriate and the mascot had to be gender neutral.

“Frederick Douglass was a firm believer in equality for all ... Something tells me that he probably would have found the name to be offensive to (women) and would not represent the whole of your school,” said Christy Morris of Lexington, who signed the petition.

Connie Hubbard of Richmond explained online why she signed the petition: “Surprised when there is an apparent lack of insight with community leaders and educators.”

The petition said the definition of a stallion is a male horse that has not been castrated, used for breeding or is slang for a powerful and virile man who has a lot of lovers.

 

I've never heard "stallion" used that way. "Stud", yes..."stallion", no.

I've never heard "stallion" used that way. "Stud", yes..."stallion", no.

I've definitely heard it used that way before.

I've never heard "stallion" used that way. "Stud", yes..."stallion", no.

 

I have. Knew a dude in law school that once declared that he wasn't "a one-filly stallion."

 

I still laugh every time I think about that dude.

I've definitely heard it used that way before.

 

I have. Knew a dude in law school that once declared that he wasn't "a one-filly stallion."

 

I still laugh every time I think about that dude.

 

...fair enough :idunno:

I don't even care if it is used that way. It's no reason to get upset. They aren't calling their female players stallions. They are calling their mascot stallions. In grade school, my team was the runnin' rebels, but I didn't dress up like a Confederate soldier and wreak havoc on the North. It was just a mascot.

The article has been updated...the school district has now decided that the students will get to vote on a "horse-themed" mascot instead.

 

Petition created against Stallions mascot for Lexington's new high school | Lexington Herald-Leader

The article has been updated...the school district has now decided that the students will get to vote on a "horse-themed" mascot instead.

 

Petition created against Stallions mascot for Lexington's new high school | Lexington Herald-Leader

 

Geez

Threads like this always evoke the Georgetown (Ohio) mascots.

 

G-Men.

Lady G-Men.

 

Talk about being conflicted.

They'll end up The Unicorns if they aren't careful.

I like the name. I also see why the girls have issues. Change it to the mares and see if the boys whine?

Geez

 

So what are the likely suspects...

 

Thoroughbreds?

 

Mustangs?

 

Broncos?

This is terrible. How dare the students get any input on the choice of mascot.

This is terrible. How dare the students get any input on the choice of mascot.

 

How many other students get a choice of mascot?

This is terrible. How dare the students get any input on the choice of mascot.

 

I think there's a really good chance they would have come out with something much more satisfying and interesting in the first place had they involved students from the get-go. I guess the difficulty they run into is the fact that they don't have an assembled body of students as of yet.