In response to Rep. Joel Briscoe’s Dec. 3 opinion piece, reasonable alternatives to discarding Bountiful High School’s Braves mascot ought to be considered. He admits that he “knew next to nothing about the various ‘Indian’ signs and symbols that were being used to symbolize [the] school’s status as the ‘Braves.’”
Ignorance shouldn’t be an excuse to throw out tradition. Native American braves are certainly something the school could emulate. The school should educate the faculty, student body and community about what each of the emblems located around the campus and community means. If some of the images are more Hollywood than factual, that figure can be thrown out and replaced with a meaningful icon that is explained.
When reading Anne Hilleman’s mystery novel, “A Tale Teller,” which takes place in the Four Corners area, I learned that that mascot of Shiprock High School in New Mexico is the Chieftains. Maybe Bountiful could learn to understand and appreciate its mascot as well as the Shiprock community. Braves and chieftains are positive concepts associated with our indigenous peoples, unlike the slang used by the Washington football team.
Dale Nelson, Salt Lake Tribune