LSU Students Support the Red, White and Blue [VIDEO]
Over the last week, there's been a lot of talk about a petition that was started at Change.org asking LSU Baton Rouge to change their mascot from 'the fighting tigers' to something less controversial.
Where's the controversy you might ask? Apparently, 'the fighting tigers' were a Civil War infantry unit from Louisiana known for their violence on and off the battlefield. It has been brought to our attention that this might be considered racist imagery to some. I'm not trying to belittle anyone's feelings here, but I've lived most of my life in Louisiana and it never even crossed my mind to question where the LSU mascot came from. After all, Mike is a Bengal tiger in my eyes with a habitat that's nicer than my house. When I think of 'the fighting tigers,' I'm more prone to thinking of Mike VI who battled cancer, not the Civil War.
Maybe I'm naive, been when I think of the Civil War, I think of separatists. So, when I saw this video taken at the LSU Baton Rouge campus from a couple years, I started to wonder. Sure, there's the dude trying to burn the American flag, but look at the number of LSU students who not only bleed purple and gold, but also bleed red, white and blue. They're obviously proud American citizens.
In short, do you think they think of themselves as separate from the rest of the country? I don't. It's something to think about.