A Richmondite who’s fiercely proud of his Scottish roots is taking aim at Simon Fraser University for once again considering erasing the name “Clan” from its sports teams.
Ian MacLeod, as you may have guessed from his surname, is from the Clan MacLeod and is a former president of the Clan MacLeod Societies of Canada and former director of the world-wide Clan MacLeod.
And he’s not best pleased at SFU’s latest review of its sporting nickname, which is meant to honour the Scottish heritage of Simon Fraser, the fur trader and explorer who the school was named after.
The trouble stems from the fact the moniker sounds like “Klan,” as in the U.S.-based, white supremacist Ku Klux Klan (KKK), which causes friction every time the SFU “Clan” teams travel south to compete against American universities.
When reaching out to the Richmond News, retired lawyer MacLeod accused SFU professor Holly Andersen – who was behind a 2017 petition to change the name and who supports the latest move – of “degrading Scottish history and the clans.”
“Yet again…Andersen is trying expunge the name ‘Clan.’ In the process, in spite of her denials, she is insulting over 1,000 years of Scottish culture and history; likewise with some Indigenous groups, who also have clans,” said MacLeod, who used to MC the annual Robbie Burns Suppers in Richmond before ill health.
“I object, strongly, on at least six levels.”
Firstly, MacLeod said the Scottish clans, with a “long and mostly honourable history of over 1,000 years, predate the KKK by centuries.”
“The name clan comes from a Gaelic word meaning children. At their roots, the clans are extended family groups. Today, there over 500 Scottish clans, spread around the world. Of those who report Scottish ancestry, there are about five million in Canada and six million in the USA.
“On the other hand, the KKK was first created in the U.S. in 1865 (and closed and then recreated in 1915 and again in 1946). They are a minority, white supremacist group. They have maybe 15,000 members, so are really a fringe group of racist bigots.
“A fringe group should not be overriding the ancient and honourable history of the Scottish clans.”
Given the present context of riots and racial sweeping unrest across North America, MacLeod said he “fully supports the goals and aspirations” of Black Lives Matter.
“But you will never be able to honour the (admittedly marginalized) Black and other minority communities by willfully insulting another group of people, in this case, the many Scottish clans,” added MacLeod.
As a fifth generation Canadian, whose Scottish ancestors came to Canada between 1810 and 1860, MacLeod said he, nor SFU, should be hiding their heritage because a “relatively new fringe uses a name that, in part, sounds like ‘Clan.’”
“It is disingenuous to attack the clan name because it looks or sounds like something totally unrelated,” he added.
“This point may sound facetious but for the fact that this is exactly what is on the SFU web site margin at www.sfu.ca/philosophy/events/news/2020news/whatsinaname.html.)
“On that basis, one would have to rename the university’s degrees. Bachelor is ‘clearly’ sexist (as in unmarried and male). Masters is ‘clearly’ classist or racist (as in the master and servant/slave relationship).
“No rational person would support changing those names on that basis. So why is the ‘sounds like’ Klan given standing here?”
MacLeod offered that someone would have to be “uneducated or willfully blind to think that clan (as in a Highland Scottish family) is the same as Klan (an American racist group).
“Should any institution of higher learning be catering to the willfully uninformed or outright stupid?
“Surely it would be better to educate and inform the misinformed than to insult the Scottish clans?
“As with any matter worth defending, one should not cave to the lowest common or least informed denominator.”
A recent SFU survey showed a majority the student athletes support a move to drop the Clan as the name for the school's sports teams.
A statement sent from SFU to the News recognized that there are “many different perspectives and opinions about the Clan athletics team nickname, which honours indigenous Scottish traditions.
“SFU athletes compete in the United States as Canada’s only NCAA team, and we are aware that some have mistakenly made associations between our Scottish nickname and the Ku Klux Klan.
“The university is deeply troubled by and attentive to the emotions and concerns to which these associations have given rise, particularly in light of our revulsion to and condemnation of anti-Black racism.
“A review process has been underway for several months within the university to provide the basis for a decision on this difficult issue.”
SFU’s statement added that its “deeply committed to Black students, faculty and staff, and to the community at large.
“We acknowledge that we have much work to do to ensure that our ideals for a just society are reflected in our own practices, policies and procedures, and we are actively engaged in efforts to better support the Black community.”
The News asked if the “review process” referenced has completed.
