George Washington University officially drops nickname deemed "extremely offensive," unveils new moniker
Answering calls from students and the broader community, George Washington University will formally change its nickname to the Revolutionaries, officials announced this week.
The new name will apply to each of the school's athletic teams, and comes after years of pushback against the school's former moniker, "Colonials." Students had protested its connotation, given the violent and oppressive history of American colonization.
"We, as students of the George Washington University, believe it is of great exigence that the University changes its official mascot," reads the description of a petition organized by George Washington University students, which received more than 530 signatures. "The use of 'Colonials,' no matter how innocent the intention, is received as extremely offensive by not only students of the University, but the nation and world at large."
"The historically, negatively-charged figure of Colonials has too deep a connection to colonization and glorifies the act of systemic oppression," the organizers wrote. In addition to "Revolutionaries," "Hippos" and "Riverhorses" were also suggested as alternative monikers.
Chuck Todd, who hosts the NBC talk series "Meet the Press" and is a GW alumnus, announced the school's new name in a broadcast-style video released on Wednesday. The video also included feedback from students and staff at the school.
"The nickname that will represent GW's athletic teams and the community at large ... What's in a name? Plenty, it turns out," said Todd from behind a news desk. "Raise high, Revolutionaries."
The university's new moniker was decided based on 47,000 points of feedback from community members, collected over 12 months, George Washington said.
"Revolutionaries" was one of 8,000 original suggestions that officials narrowed down through community engagement and outreach over that time period, including focus groups, random sample surveys and merchandise distribution, the school said. The university's board of trustees then voted on a recommendation from the president and Moniker Advisory Committee, which the school said included students, faculty and alumni, to officially change the moniker.
"This is an exciting day for the George Washington University Revolutionaries," said Mark Wrighton, the university president, in a statement. "I am very grateful for the active engagement of our community throughout the development of the new moniker. This process was truly driven by our students, faculty, staff and alumni, and the result is a moniker that broadly reflects our community—and our distinguished and distinguishable GW spirit."
George Washington University will work to update school merchandise and athletic apparel to reflect the new moniker in the coming weeks and months. The university plans to fully adopt Revolutionaries as its nickname in the 2023-24 academic year.
