Our university is filled to the brim with tradition, and the students, alumni, faculty and staff are proud of that tradition. This is a great part of the Ole Miss culture, but sometimes we must abandon those traditions that blind us.
Colonel Rebel was removed as our mascot in 2003; it seems appropriate that the personality election title be removed as well. We, the editorial staff of The Daily Mississippian, commend the Associated Student Body for removing this final lingering memory of our old mascot and all the emotions and symbolism tied to it. If we want to change the culture of our university, then we must be consistent with our message.
Colonel Rebel no longer represents the views of the university and its student body. It is time to leave our sordid history behind, move forward and create new, inclusive traditions of which everyone can be proud. We are coming ever closer to a time when we no longer have to be haunted by the actions of the students who came before us. The removal of Colonel Rebel is a big step; our reputation is important.
That being said, we do not support how the Colonel Rebel title was removed. The Judicial Council should have anticipated a strong emotional reaction to the issue and left it to the ASB Committee for Student Life, which wanted to conduct a survey before bringing the issue to the Senate floor.
Much of the outrage over this decision stems from the exclusion of the university community’s input and from the Judicial Committee’s ignorance of due process. This decision creates a feeling of distrust and suspicion, instead of the goodwill that we should be attempting to foster on this campus. Discussion and compromise is the best way to move forward.
It is hard to believe that this removal of Ole Miss culture was determined by five unelected members of the Judicial Council. If decisions like this are not left to members of the student government, then why are we holding elections?
We believe that if all of the members of the university community had been given the chance to have their voices heard, the same decision would have been made and it would not have been as controversial.
That opportunity — that trust — was never offered, and thus we are left in our current situation filled with bickering, clashing and finger-pointing. Therefore, the backlash is somewhat understandable.
We also fear the precedent that this decision creates. Does this mean that other large issues can be brought to the Judicial Council in the same way?
Can smokers anonymously submit complaints to have the smoking ban overturned? Can we make the plus-minus grading system a thing of the past? What powers, what responsibilities does the Judicial Council really have?
If we leave the council’s powers unchecked, then we owe an apology to Gregory Alston and his cabinet. They wasted their spring running campaigns to represent the students of this university.
We believe the motivations and intentions behind the removal of Colonel Rebel were good, but the means were suspect. This will not resolve the issue that we face, however.
We ask that the university community accept the removal of the Colonel Rebel title. It has happened and it is best for the progress of the university. At the same time, we fully support the investigation led by Attorney General Robert Pillow. If there was an abuse of power, it needs to be shared with the public.
It is not fair for ASB officials to use their positions as a means to pursue their personal interests rather than the interests of those they represent. That is not the point of a civil servant, and those who hope to have a similar position of power outside of college should know this.
We, The Daily Mississippian editorial staff, pledge to hold our officials accountable so that similar abuses of power do not happen again.
The Daily Mississippian editorial staff consists of Editor-in-Chief Adam Ganucheau, Managing Editor Phil McCausland, Houston Brock, Grant Beebe, Molly Yates, Summer Wigley, David Collier, Kimber LaCour, Sarah Parrish, Tisha Coleman, Ignacio Murillo, Jon Haywood and Jeff Hamm.
