Seminoles Get the Waiver

The Florida State Seminoles are an interesting exception to the rule. They have had a mascot Chieftain played by a caucasian male student parade around the sidelines of their sporting events for years, going back as far as 1958. In 1972, the leaders of the Seminole Indian Tribe attended a FSU basketball game to see what exactly was considered to be representive of them. After the game, the leaders expressed their concern over the mascot and that version was retired. In 1978, the 19th century Seminole chief Chief Osceola and Renegade the Horse replaced the previous mascots. Chief Osceola was designed with the approval of the Seminole Indian Tribe and has been the official mascot of Florida State athletics ever since.

The rather interesting part to all of this is that when the NCAA recently decided to officially put an end to demeaning usage of Native American imagery and names, Florida State received a waiver. This was due to their work with the Seminole Indian Tribe. Florida State has always been nothing but respectful of the name and has always worked closely with the Tribe. As a result, the NCAA deamed that they were in fact not being demeaning and have been able to keep their team name, logo, and mascot unlike many other schools.

For further reading, visit:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NatNews/message/39441

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/2005-08-23-fsu-mascot-approved_x.htm