'Pathetic' Or Applaudable, Radnor Raiders Name And Logo Are Gone

RADNOR TOWNSHIP, PA — A special meeting that at last retired both the Radnor Raiders logo and the name, ended with school board members remember that the community is "Radnor Proud," more than merely Raider Proud.

Both the Raiders name for Radnor Township sports teams and the Native American visual logo that accompany it were retired by the Radnor Township School District board of directors this week, with all board members in agreement on dismissing the logo, and one board member dissenting.

Board member Nancy Monahan cast the sole vote against changing the Raiders' name, saying that the name has no Native American tie and is used by many other sports teams, without issue. Monahan prefaced her disagreement by saying she is "fully onboard" with the problems related to the logo, and with the mascot that was retired in 2013.

Board member Lydia Solomon made the motion to remove the name along with the logo. She said she knows "how much passion was around this issue," and wants people in Radnor to know they've but heard. But, she added, "The way I want to be in the world is to not cause harm." She said she wants the school's logo to be neutral or positive, but not to be something that's experienced as negative for anyone.

The retired logo's two feathers dangle on a circle that encloses a capital letter R for Radnor Raider; imagery that evokes what many in the district said is damaging and denigrating to Native Americans. Prior to the board's Sept. 2 vote, many Radnor High School alum told the school board the logo and name were "embarrassing" even as they said they were otherwise very proud of their school.

Student groups have long been active in calling for the change. Social media posts following the decision were passionate, both in support of the change, and decrying it as a "pathetic" loss. Another said, "I don’t care what you change the name to because it will always be 'RADNOR RED RAIDERS' to me and so many more."

The group Retire the 'Red Raider' describes itself as "a coalition of alumni, students, teachers, community members, and Native leaders working to retire South Point High School’s offensive Red Raider mascot." After the decision, the group said on social media, " Congratulations to our friends in Radnor, PA on their successful effort to retire the Radnor High School (Red) Raider mascot! The Radnor School Board courageously voted last night to remove all Native American imagery and the 'Raider' name."

But alum groups online raged in the hours after the news was out. One man posted a clip of the iconic "crying Indian" from a 1971 Keep America Beautiful campaign ad, saying, "Way to go school board you happy now?"

Monahan's argument for not discarding the Raiders name was primarily that, by definition, this name has no intrinsic link the Native Americans. She gave the example of the Colgate Raiders, who rebranded their team, keeping the Raiders. Monahan said she felt the name is "still appropriate" because the essence of sports is a competitive raid on the other team.

In public discussion leading up to this week's decision, sociology professor and Radnor School District parent Rick Eckstein, Ph.D. had addressed the argument Monahan brought up. Eckstein told the school board last month that he had thought perhaps the district could dispose of Native American imagery but keep the Raiders name. But, he explained, that he had realized the name and imagery were "fused" like he also thought was the case with the recent Aunt Jemima brand that Quaker Oats retired. He told the board in August that it seemed impossible to use one and not the other.

Board member Liz Duffy echoed the idea in the special meeting, saying the name by itself was not salvageable. "I just think at the end of the day we can't do this with Raider because there's too much baggage."

Monahan commented at the meeting's end, saying her dissenting vote did not imply a lack of cooperation going forward.

"Even though it didn't go my way, I think we're all on board to make this a positive experience for everybody," said Monahan. She emphasized what other board member said at the meeting's end, that "it's not so much Raider, it's Radnor. We're Radnor Proud."

Radnor School District Superintendent Ken Batchelor said the next steps will be to retire all the imagery, and that administration will look at what it takes to do that.

He said the district will then move forward with establishing a new name and mascot.

"Give us a little time. We have a lot on our plates right now. It will take time to remove all those aspects," he said.

Read related story from the board's August meeting here.