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The Radnor Raiders are Now the Radnor Raptors
Published:
Pour one out for the Radnor Raiders, because the nickname is history. Done-zo. Squashed.
They are rebranding as the Radnor “Raptors,” as Action News explains here:
The mascot will now be the Raptors after the school board decided to eliminate the Raider nickname last year from the high school and middle school because of its Native American imagery.
Many agreed the imagery needed to go, but some were fighting to keep the Raider name.
Nearly 1,000 students voted for the new mascot this month. They had a choice between the Raptors or “R” for Radnor.
In April, a group of students walked out of the high school to protest the mascot change.
The large collective, most with signs in hand, made their way into an open field as part of a peaceful, school-sanctioned demonstration against the school’s rebranding.
Honestly, I didn’t even know this was a thing. When you think of controversial local high school nicknames, Neshaminy comes to mind. I thought for sure they’d be pressured into getting rid of the “Redskins” nickname last summer. Souderton and Upper Perk are both the “Indians.” You have other schools like Radnor that also go by “Raiders” or “Warriors,” with the Native American imagery, like Methacton, Coatesville, and Twin Valley.
That would obviously seem to be the issue here with Radnor. The name “Raider” is not inherently “problematic;” the issue was the use of that indigenous imagery, in logos that look like this:
For what it’s worth, the Radnor “Raptor” is not a dinosaur. It’s not a Toronto Raptor. It’s going to be a bird type of raptor, like the kind that fly over Hawk Mountain up there in Kempton. Shout out Kempton!
I’m just curious to see if this move spurs any change for the other Redskins, Indians, and Raider/Warriors schools in Pennsylvania.
Kevin has been writing about Philadelphia sports since 2009. He spent seven years in the CBS 3 sports department and started with the Union during the team's 2010 inaugural season. He went to the academic powerhouses of Boyertown High School and West Virginia University. email - k.kinkead@sportradar.com