Jump to content

Edmonton CFL team rebrands as "Elks"


Sec19Row53

Recommended Posts

On 7/25/2020 at 9:09 AM, Gothamite said:


Except that their polar bear mascot is named “Nanook”, which is very much trading in Inuit mythology. 

But to my point--they never made a big deal about it.

Som of the teams that have faced criticism for racist logos, mascots, etc--played it up.

 

On the other hand Nanook means polar bear--so in a sense the mascot is Polar Bear the Polar Bear.

 

It was never used in a derogatory manner.

 

Comic Sans walks into a bar, and the bartender says, "Sorry, we don't serve your type here."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 560
  • Created
  • Last Reply
47 minutes ago, Stampman said:

But to my point--they never made a big deal about it.

Som of the teams that have faced criticism for racist logos, mascots, etc--played it up.

 

On the other hand Nanook means polar bear--so in a sense the mascot is Polar Bear the Polar Bear.

 

It was never used in a derogatory manner.

 


“derogatory manner” is not the problem.  At least not in the US.  I don’t know how the various First Nations feel about it, but the general consensus is to avoid all Native American imagery.

 

And “Nanook” as a proper name is more than just generic “polar bear”.  It’s also the name of a religious figure.  


Which may be why they haven’t always welcomed commercial use. 

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/nanook-nanuq-stuffed-animal-irks-inuit-1.4282224

 

So I don’t know what the answer is.  The team needs to listen to the people. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 minutes ago, Gothamite said:

 

 

So I don’t know what the answer is.  The team needs to listen to the people. 

They have, that's why they are changing the name.

Comic Sans walks into a bar, and the bartender says, "Sorry, we don't serve your type here."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 minutes ago, Stampman said:

They have, that's why they are changing the name.


absolutely.  What I’m saying is that they also need to listen to the people about their mascot. 
 

I have no reason to believe that they won’t, and as you note lots of reasons to hope they will continue to do so 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Like I said--I'm not an Eskimo fan--as a CFL fan could tell by my username, the Eskimos would be my least favourite team.

 

But they have done better than many other teams.

 

Of course there is a debate about what is or isn't needed--and it is not my intent to get into that discussion here.

 

but they have reached out & asked questions, they have looked into it & have reacted based on that process.

 

I have no problem if they use a polar bear mascot, if someone wants to object to the name--that's a different ball of wax.

After all the Stampeders (Who had the first mascot) use a dog named Ralph and the Roughriders use a gopher (Gainer)

Neither has anything to do with the team name.

Comic Sans walks into a bar, and the bartender says, "Sorry, we don't serve your type here."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I like the sound of Edmonton Mountaineers. Just like Washington doesn’t need to cling onto “HTTR”, Edmonton shouldn’t cling onto the Double E.

 

 

(Quick search shows there’s a few mountain ranges so I’m not totally out of place for the name)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

37 minutes ago, DNAsports said:

I like the sound of Edmonton Mountaineers. Just like Washington doesn’t need to cling onto “HTTR”, Edmonton shouldn’t cling onto the Double E.

 

 

(Quick search shows there’s a few mountain ranges so I’m not totally out of place for the name)

 

Yeahhhhhhhh, Edmonton isn't the city for a team named the Mountaineers.

 

It's a totally out of place name.

IEI5Tg1.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites

50 minutes ago, monkeypower said:

 

Yeahhhhhhhh, Edmonton isn't the city for a team named the Mountaineers.

 

It's a totally out of place name.

Yeah I pretty much winged it on that. I really just wanted to show how the team shouldn’t rely heavily on EE to pick a new name.

 

Gatekeepers (“Gateway to the North” is an unofficial city slogan)

 

Sentinels* (similar vein to Gatekeepers)

Capitals/Titans (fit well for the team (Edmonton is Alberta’s capital) (Alberta is known as the oil capital of Canada aka a “Titan of Oil”) however there’s obvious similarities to other pro teams)

 

*- It would be hilarious if somehow Edmonton & Washington both accidentally chose “Sentinels”

 

EDIT: Wait... did I just unintentionally prove the golden reason why the Tennessee Titans should absolutely not give a 💩 about diehard “Keep it in my city!” Houston Oilers fans and embrace their Oilers History as big ol middle finger? Titans = Oilers.


Tennessee- 1

Houston- 0

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Stampman said:

Like I said--I'm not an Eskimo fan--as a CFL fan could tell by my username, the Eskimos would be my least favourite team.

 

But they have done better than many other teams.

 

Yes, they have.  And I personally applaud them for it. 

 

Quote

Of course there is a debate about what is or isn't needed--and it is not my intent to get into that discussion here.

 

but they have reached out & asked questions, they have looked into it & have reacted based on that process.

 

And I hope they continue to do so. 
 

Quote

I have no problem if they use a polar bear mascot, if someone wants to object to the name--that's a different ball of wax.

After all the Stampeders (Who had the first mascot) use a dog named Ralph and the Roughriders use a gopher (Gainer)

Neither has anything to do with the team name.


In this case, it isn’t a random name.  It’s a sacred name.  I can only hope that they continue to listen to the Inuit before deciding if the polar bear god-figure is an appropriate mascot.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

35 minutes ago, DNAsports said:

Yeah I pretty much winged it on that. I really just wanted to show how the team shouldn’t rely heavily on EE to pick a new name.

 

Gatekeepers (“Gateway to the North” is an unofficial city slogan)

 

Sentinels* (similar vein to Gatekeepers)

Capitals/Titans (fit well for the team (Edmonton is Alberta’s capital) (Alberta is known as the oil capital of Canada aka a “Titan of Oil”) however there’s obvious similarities to other pro teams)

 

Gatekeeping has too many alternate meanings and is clunky. The rest seem like stretches. Also theres already an Edmonton baseball team named the Capitals.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 minutes ago, Chromatic said:

Gatekeeping has too many bad alternate meanings and is clunky. The rest seem like stretches.

You could also argue that “Elks” and “Express” (the front runners in this thread) are stretches too. Both carry the same relative significance to Edmonton as the ones I mentioned.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 minutes ago, DNAsports said:

You could also argue that “Elks” and “Express” (the front runners in this thread) are stretches too. Both carry the same relative significance to Edmonton as the ones I mentioned.

I agree, which is why I think the team should take their time and do it right rather than jump on a quick fix name.

 

Personally if I were an Edmonton fan, I'd try to stick to the motif Eskimos was an attempt at. Something like Trappers or Explorers (not literally those but something along those lines) or something to do with the vast expanse of the Canadian North, as opposed to a random animal or inanimate object.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Reasons to love Elks as a name:

 

-Elks name has some history attached to it.  The Edmonton Elks played in the 1922 Grey Cup.

 

-Can keep the EE logo.

 

-Plenty of Elk in Alberta.  Fits the region.

 

-Team name not commonly used.  Keeping with feature of how CFL teams have quirky names.

 

-The name feels just so Canadian it fits.

 

-Imagine the 3rd uniform helmet with antlers on it!  That could be damn awesome.  Better than the gigantic EE they have on the helmet now when they wear their thirds.

 

---------------------------

 

When I hear Express as an option, I cringe.  It reminds me of a couple of teams in the USFL and AAF.  A fill in the blank team name for the next start up football league.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Whatever the end up doing for the name, we know they will remain green and gold.  Just hope they make the right choice and drop the black trim they have been using on the helmet striping and number shadow.  No more black trim gets my vote.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, DEAD! said:

How about the Huskies? From "Eskies" to Huskies.... 🤷‍♂️

 

Not a bad idea, but there’s already a Prairie Junior Football Team in Edmonton called the Huskies.

 

I say move them south of town, change their primary colour, and call them the “Leduc a l’Orange”!

I can haz sig?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

7 hours ago, Chromatic said:

Yeah, and Elk isn't a terrible name. I think the point was that it does feel a little forced though for sake of keeping the EE

If they do end up keeping EE, I think I like the sound of Edmonton Evergreens. I’m no dendrologist, but I’m pretty sure there’s a lot of evergreen trees in the vast expanse of Canadian wilderness 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.




×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.