“UT needs rich donors”: Emails show wealthy alumni supporting “Eyes of Texas” threatened to pull donations

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stocker08 said:
Doesn't affect me at all. I could care less if it changed. However....I do find it funny watching a bunch of righties....the party of the old white man....crying about things like this. Boohoo. Whine some more you poor victim. Old white man scools just can't catch a break!
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Doesn’t affect you but yet here you are whining about it.

Progressive crying about how it’s all too hard for you to take. Sad & pathetic punk ass little bitch.
 


stocker08 said:
The song originated at Texas with the spirit association performing it in black face.

www.khou.com

Here's why Texas Longhorn athletes say the 'Eyes of Texas' song has racist undertones

UT Professor Dr. Edmond Gordan explains the nodes of racism aren’t in the ‘The Eyes of Texas’ lyrics but in the song’s past.
www.khou.com www.khou.com
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No worries though. The old white men say that there is no problem here and that this doesn't offend them. :rolleyes:
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What about a old black man who is not offended by it at all. It is a spirit song. Those performing and enjoying it now have nothing to do with those that misrepresented before.
 

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builtbadgers said:
What about a old black man who is not offended by it at all. It is a spirit song. Those performing and enjoying it now have nothing to do with those that misrepresented before.
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that person doesn’t really matter: they aren’t trying to recruit you to Texas.


honestly they either should get rid of the song or they should recruit people saying this is the song and it’s not going away. So if you have an issue with it commit somewhere else.
 

The virtue signaling in this thread is pathetic. Look at the song, there is nothing offensive about it. This is made up bs by the woke mob, good for Texas to not give in to the cancel culture.
 


Literally its harmless spirit song with vague lyrics. The context that it had something to do with blackface seems like a stretch. BUT having even a whiff of racism attached to something involving football where 90% of the players are black can be a problem. There are plenty of rich people in Texas I wouldn't worry about the loss of donations from the old traditionalists. And yeah people who call others "snowflakes" for being sensitive to this stuff tend to be major hypocrites when it comes to changes of any sort.
 

scools12 said:
Who are you to tell me what I can say?
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You don't get to say whatever you want and you don't get to do whatever you want.

That's the law. If you don't like it, get out.
 





MplsGopher said:
To you.

You don't get to speak for anyone else.
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You’re 100% correct. But just because someone is offended by something doesn’t mean they are being rational. This is nothing but a bunch of white people acting more offended than the group they claim to be protecting.
 

DMB123 said:
This is nothing but a bunch of white people acting more offended than the group they claim to be protecting.
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There are no black people or black players on UT who are offended?
 

This song would end real fast if a bunch of 4*/5* minority athletes decided to go someplace where they didn't have to deal with implicit racism on a daily basis. Btw, what does it say about U-Texas when only 5.3% of its student body is black (fall semester 2020, UT facts &figures report)?
 

Go U Phars said:
This song would end real fast if a bunch of 4*/5* minority athletes decided to go someplace where they didn't have to deal with implicit racism on a daily basis. Btw, what does it say about U-Texas when only 5.3% of its student body is black (fall semester 2020, UT facts &figures report)?
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Texas: 32% Hispanic, 12% Black.

Guessing neither of these are anywhere near proportional in Austin.
 



Go U Phars said:
Btw, what does it say about U-Texas when only 5.3% of its student body is black (fall semester 2020, UT facts &figures report)?
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The U of MN Twin Cities is at about 6.1% black enrollment for Spring 2021.

Enrollments | Institutional Data and Research

The Official Enrollment Statistics Report presents enrollment data for fall, spring, and summer terms from 2001 forward. Enrollment data is available for new entering students and for all undergraduates, graduates, professional, and non-degree students by campus and college across different...
oir.umn.edu oir.umn.edu
 

builtbadgers said:
What about a old black man who is not offended by it at all. It is a spirit song. Those performing and enjoying it now have nothing to do with those that misrepresented before.
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Some women probably didn't care about the right to vote either.

The fact is that this issue is being brought up by CURRENT players on that team and supported by the team marching band. Has nothing to do with what any of us think.
 

Ski U Master said:
The U of MN Twin Cities is at about 6.1% black enrollment for Spring 2021.

Enrollments | Institutional Data and Research

The Official Enrollment Statistics Report presents enrollment data for fall, spring, and summer terms from 2001 forward. Enrollment data is available for new entering students and for all undergraduates, graduates, professional, and non-degree students by campus and college across different...
oir.umn.edu oir.umn.edu
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Which is much closer to our population, around 7% Black.
 

DMB123 said:
The virtue signaling in this thread is pathetic. Look at the song, there is nothing offensive about it. This is made up bs by the woke mob, good for Texas to not give in to the cancel culture.
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What do people think "virtue signaling" means? As far as I can tell it just comes out when "I heard something I don't like!".
 

Go U Phars said:
This song would end real fast if a bunch of 4*/5* minority athletes decided to go someplace where they didn't have to deal with implicit racism on a daily basis. Btw, what does it say about U-Texas when only 5.3% of its student body is black (fall semester 2020, UT facts &figures report)?
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Ummmm.... implicit racism on a daily basis? For reals, bro? Holy shit....
 


builtbadgers said:
What about a old black man who is not offended by it at all. It is a spirit song. Those performing and enjoying it now have nothing to do with those that misrepresented before.
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Whether any one particular person does or does not find it offensive is pretty much irrelevant to the situation, from UT's perspective.

Whether justified or not, the controversy is real. UT are now faced with a perplexing dilemma.

On the one hand, the song is a school tradition, and many rich donors apparently love it. UT needs rich donors.

On the other hand, the history of the song carries racial connotations that make it offensive to some people of color. I think it is safe to say that UT needs to be able to recruit top athletes — including athletes of color — for their football team.

Not a good spot to be in. I don't envy them.
 



Been reading up on this a bit this afternoon, and here's some context to what may seem like innocuous lyrics of The Eyes of Texas:
* the phrase "the eyes of Texas are upon you" was born out of the university's third president paraphrasing Robert E. Lee's saying, "the eyes of the South are upon you".

* while the lyrics of the song were put together by a couple of university students in the early 1900's, it was believed to be first performed at black minstrel shows to the tune of "I'll Be Working on the Railroad". Harmless song, right? I didn't know it's origins, but the modern version, first learned by many of us from Looney Tunes cartoons, is a vast departure from the original version, The Levee Song. That song with those lyrics was published in 1894; Eyes of Texas was written ten years later. It doesn't appear that the song transformed to Railroad version until late 1920's.

* U. of Texas was first integrated in 1956, but the football team wasn't integrated until 1970. That song was cemented into the tradition of the university for 65 years before integration of the football team.

* It was difficult to find detailed, on the record references (perhaps with a bit more time of digging I could find), but the song has long been a sore spot for African-American players, across U. of Texas athletics. It seems a few years back some basketball players refused to sing the song and I read where the women's volleyball team also refused to take part in the singing of the song. However, nothing garnered the attention like the football team's refusal.

* In addition to the issues with this song, several U. of Texas athletes put together a list of demands over the summer which include removing renaming buildings named after prominent segregationists. Within the last five years, statues of confederate war figures, including Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee, have been removed from campus.

From what I can put together, this has an issue which has simmered for many years, with the origins of the song rather than the lyrics being at the heart of the protest and desire for its removal. If I was a Texas native/fan and I never knew the song's history, I wouldn't have a second thought about the song (except as stated by Word, I think I'd be embarrassed to have my school fight song mirroring a children's song sung by Raffi :)). If I'm an athlete or student at U. of Texas and I have this context? I imagine it'd sit very differently with me.

To the issue of football team-good luck, Steve Sarkisian and I'd keep Nick Saban's phone number handy. It seems he announced at his presser that the players would unequivocally be singing "The Eyes of Texas". I'm curious how the locker room is feeling about their new coach.
 

Up until recently, I had no idea the song was any different in any substantial way from any other school fight song — the Rowser, or On, Wisconsin, or Hail to the Victors.

But this controversy has nothing to do with me, so there's no point in me even giving my opinion. I'm not a UT student, professor or administrator; I'm not a rich donor, nor am I a 5-star recruit.

It will be interesting to see how this sorts itself out.

I have heard that Earl Campbell and Ricky Williams have both voiced support for keeping the song.
 

Here's some info from the Wiki page ; it's a little different from Otis' info. I'm not saying one is more accurate than the other, but simply pointing out that there are discrepancies.

John Sinclair wrote the Texas-specific song lyrics in 1903 to the tune of the original folk song, "I've Been Working on the Railroad," that was published nine years earlier in 1894. Sinclair was the editor of the Cactus yearbook and a UT band member, and he wrote the lyrics per the request of band member Lewis Johnson. Johnson was also the program director of the Varsity Minstrel Show that raised funds for the university track team. He debuted the song at the minstrel show.[1]

The lyrics are said to be intended to poke fun at University President William Lambdin (Colonel) Prather. Prather had attended Washington College, now Washington and Lee University, whose president, Robert E. Lee. Prather was known for including in his speeches a similar admonition, "The eyes of Texas are upon you," meaning that the state of Texas was watching and expecting the students to go out and do great things. Prather enjoyed the song and promoted its usage. He died not long thereafter, and the song was played at his funeral.

The song is sung at momentous occasions such as graduation and even solemn occasions such as funerals. Led by the Longhorn Marching Band, it was sung at the July 14, 2007, funeral of First Lady Lady Bird Johnson, an alumna of the University of Texas.[2][3] When singing the song, participants generally raise their right arm with their hand making the Hook 'em Horns symbol of The University.[3] A recording of "The Eyes of Texas" was played over the Rose Bowl public-address system when the Dallas Cowboys defeated the Buffalo Bills to win Super Bowl XXVII, while Madison Square Garden organist Ray Castoldi played it when the Houston Rockets defeated the New York Knicks in the seventh game of the 1994 NBA Finals to clinch Texas' first NBA championship.

Highway rest stops through the state feature road signs stating that "The Eyes of Texas are upon You!" These signs feature a silhouette of a Texas Ranger, encouraging motorists to call 9-1-1 to report criminal activity.

The lyrics of the song have been interpreted as embracing the "Lost Cause" ideology, which advocates the belief that the practice of slavery in the antebellum South was just and moral.[7][8]

en.wikipedia.org

The Eyes of Texas - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org
 

If there's one thing we've learned in recent times, you can truly find whatever it is that you're looking for if you really, really look hard enough
 


Ogee Oglethorpe said:
If there's one thing we've learned in recent times, you can truly find whatever it is that you're looking for if you really, really look hard enough
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If you squint really hard, you can see old, white Texas boosters telling young black men “shut your mouth, run the ball, and sing my song”.
 

MplsGopher said:
If you squint really hard, you can see old, white Texas boosters telling young black men “shut your mouth, run the ball, and sing my song”.
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Well, not to quibble, but neither Earl Campbell nor Ricky Williams are white, and they both have defended the song.

As to whether Earl and/or Ricky are old, I think that depends on the age of the person making that judgement. People younger than me are obviously far too young; people older than me are clearly, definitely, undeniably old as dirt. At least, that's how I see things.;)
 
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RememberMurray said:
Well, not to quibble, but neither Earl Campbell nor Ricky Williams are white. As to whether they are old... that depends on the age of the person making that judgement.
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I don’t follow you. Did your last link say they supported replacing the song?
 

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