NCAA asks, Why 'Warriors?'

By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Staff

The NCAA wants to know what the University of Hawai'i-Manoa is doing with a "Native American" nickname.

And, UH wants to know why the NCAA thinks its nickname — Warriors — is Native American.

"That's what we told the NCAA," said John McNamara, UH associate athletic director. "They understood, but still asked us to complete the paperwork."

The NCAA has asked 30 schools, including UH, "why they have that as their nickname (and) how it correlates to their mascot," said Gail Dent, NCAA associate director of public relations.

"We're gathering information (on Warriors) because it is a name often associated with Native American imagery," Dent said. As part of the process, schools are being asked to fill out self-study questionnaires.

So, McNamara said, "We will comply."

Dent said approximately 70 percent of the schools have so far complied with the NCAA directive.

"I can't imagine anyone ever objecting to The Kamehameha Schools calling themselves 'Warriors' — ever — since they were built on the memory of The Conqueror," said Jon Osorio, assistant professor of Hawaiian Studies at UH.

"It is difficult to get angry at the (university) for using it," Osorio said. "It is just when they do stupid things like having that (1980s or '90s) mascot with the body suit or changing the name without consulting anyone. People who are upset are upset because of that."

Jim Manke, UH-Manoa spokesman, said he was unaware of any complaints about the Warrior nickname by Hawaiian or Polynesian groups.

The NCAA stepped into the issue of imagery, nicknames and mascots after the NAACP began a 2000 economic boycott of South Carolina over that state's use of the Confederate flag.

The NCAA imposed a two-year ban on holding its championships in South Carolina in 2002 and extended the ban indefinitely last year.

Since then, the NCAA's Minority Opportunities and Interests Committee has taken an interest in nicknames, mascots and symbols.

"If it is a situation where that's not the case (the nickname referring to Native Americans) at any particular institution, they can send the self-evaluation back to the NCAA specifying that," Dent said.

When UH unveiled its new kapa-trimmed "H" logo and nicknames in 2000, a lone student protester's shouts of "Stolen Hawaiian land!" were the only protests.

There were more protests over UH cutting back the use of "Rainbows," which had been in use since 1923 and an administrator blaming gay symbolism as a contributing factor. He later apologized.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8044.

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