This argument might work for a school in New England, but Wyoming? Doesn’t a cowboy seem appropriate?
The Casper Star Tribune reports:
Faculty criticize use of cowboy in UW slogan as ‘sexist,’ ‘exclusive’Faculty groups are criticizing a new University of Wyoming marketing campaign built around the image of a cowboy, saying its proposed slogan is sexist and promotes a white, heterosexual stereotype.The slogan — “The World Needs More Cowboys” — is the product of a Boulder, Colorado-based marketing firm, Victor and Spoils, to which the university has already paid $500,000. The line initially gained the attention of faculty in the spring, when it was mentioned in a Faculty Senate meeting. It immediately drew criticism, faculty members said.“I had lots of different reactions,” said Angela Jaime, the director of the American Indian Studies department. “I was really disappointed in the university for endorsing such a negative slogan.”“I was kind of like, ‘Woah, has anyone else heard of this?’” said Christine Boggs, an instructor and the co-chair of the Committee on Women and People of Color at UW. The group sent a letter to university leaders to voice its “grave concerns” about the slogan and requesting that UW “shelve” it in favor of a more diverse tagline.“Well the concern for me is the ‘boy’ part, right?” said Christine Porter, a UW professor and vocal opponent of the slogan. “Since the 1950s at least in other parts of the country, it is no longer acceptable … to use the generic masculine and pretend that includes the feminine.”
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