The University of Nebraska at Lincoln has altered its cartoon mascot, Herbie Husker, to remove a gesture that has been co-opted by white supremacists.
ESPN reported that the original mascot that debuted in the early 1970s makes an “OK” gesture with its left hand, a signal that has come to be associated with the white power movement.
The Anti-Defamation League included the symbol in its Hate on Display database three years ago, recommending that entities considering use of the gesture proceed with extreme caution.
“The concern about the hand gesture was brought to our attention by our apparel provider and others, and we decided to move forward with a revised Herbie Husker logo,” Nebraska Athletics said in a statement.
Now, Herbie Husker would have one finger up to indicate the “We’re No. 1” sign which is available for licensing.
Problematic Mascots
This is not the first time an academic institution has made changes to its mascot. Saddleback College in California decided to retire the Gaucho because of its harmful depiction of Latin Americans.
“We heard of their embarrassment and humiliation, and how our mascot reminded them, each time it appeared, that they were seen at this college not as different but as other, not as part of a culture we appreciated, but a culture that was lesser, so much so that our predecessors depicted the proud horseman of the Pampas plains in South America as a mad Mexican cowboy,” wrote President Dr. Elliot Stern in a letter.
The college also announced that it would select a new name for its sports teams to be more racially conscious.