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ARLINGTON, Texas—From 1951-1971, the University of Texas at Arlington mobilized behind the controversial Johnny Reb Rebels mascot and the Confederate fight song “Dixie,” which sparked dispute in the late ’60s and early ’70s during a societal shift in the Civil Rights era.
The Rebel mascot theme was associated with the southern pride of the Confederacy that elevated racial tension in the United States. The theme was increasingly seen as problematic, and as the civil rights movement gained momentum, the movement to eliminate it and adopt the “Mavericks” mascot became what many believe to be a pivotal moment in UTA’s history.
UTA integrates in 1962
The campus integrated by admitting its first black students in 1962. The Rebel controversy began when UTA was formally known as Arlington State College, a name it held from 1949 to 1967 as part of the Texas A&M system. As the school began its move to the UT system in 1965, students began questioning the etiquette of the Rebels theme. That year, the campus publication, The Shorthorn, published an article explaining that some members of the school believed that ASC should part ways with the school’s Rebel-Dixie theme.
The ASC student government held its first referendum on the Rebels theme in May 1965, resulting in a vote to retain the mascot. In response, students opposed to the theme began protesting. In the fall of 1965, students opposing the Rebel theme conducted a demonstration against the Old South theme, which attracted wide publicity.
Opposition continued to increase after James Frank Wayman, an African American student, published an award-winning essay called “The Old Fires” in the fall of 1967. In his essay, Wayman explained his objections to Confederate symbols. He explained that the Confederate battle flag was a symbol for Southerners to express their wishes to “retain and extend slavery.”
“The Confederate Flag is flown at all Klan rallies and at times has been artistically branded on the chest of the castrated, dead forms of the victims of Klan violence. This same flag, in its blood red beauty, proudly paints the breeze at the University of Texas at Arlington,” Wayman wrote.
Attitudes begin to shift
The Shorthorn then published a series of editorials in 1968 that raised concern about the “Old South” celebration that was a part of the “Rebels” theme, according to Jim McClellan in his article “Old Times There Are Not Forgotten” published that same year. This gained attention from the student government, and after many discussions and debates, it took two months for the student government to call for a phaseout of the theme.
Many students and faculty responded to the phase-out of the theme. The director of the UTA band removed the rebel flag from the uniforms, and supported by 70 members of the football team, refused to play “Dixie.” The controversy surrounding this theme continued to gain publicity, with publications such as the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reporting on the matter.
The issue reached the University of Texas System Board of Regents, which had a mixed response. Some members supported the change of the theme while others opposed it. In a letter to the University of Texas System Board of Regents and Ken Whitt, UTA’s director of news and information, Emory E. Fry expressed his concerns.
“Quite a number of my friends in the area think the Negro students at your school are asking entirely too much to satisfy their foolish desires,” Fry said.
The University of Texas at Arlington Alumni Association also advocated in favor of keeping the Rebels theme.
UTA adopts the Mavericks mascot
Many elections were held on whether the theme would change to the Mavericks in 1970, and the UT System Regents passed a rule making the Texas flag the official flag at each UT institution. After many disputes and votes in 1971, the Board of Regents officially demolished the Rebel theme. UTA President Frank Harris permitted the student body government to select a new mascot, and in a May 1971 vote, Mavericks won out over Hawks, Rangers and Toros.
The controversial Rebel theme shows the complicated social and political scene of the mid-20th century. It highlights the importance of history and how some of these traditions and symbols have been changed to support and align with the values of today. UTA is now one of the most diverse schools in the nation—U.S. News & World Report ranked UTA the sixth most diverse university in the United States—demonstrating the change and progress made over more than 70 years.
Arlington 150 is an occasional series to mark Arlington’s sesquicentennial and is produced as part of a collaboration between the University of Texas at Arlington Libraries Special Collections and UTA journalism students. This series was made possible in part by a generous Teaching in the Archives grant from UTA Libraries.
