I am extremely disappointed with the Tooele County School District and their “selection” of the Stallions to be the mascot of the new Stansbury High School. While I am not against the usage of a type of horse as the mascot, I am perplexed with the choice due to Tooele County’s roots as a rural area of Utah. It appears that the district and school personnel do not know that a stallion, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary and anyone familiar with horses, is “an un-castrated male horse; a male horse kept for breeding; kept primarily as a stud.” While this description of SHS’ future boys’ teams will no doubt fill them with chauvinistic pride, what are we going to call the girl’s teams? The Lady Stallions? This is an oxymoron. Or will they have to be known as the SHS Mares? By the way, a mare is — according to the same source — “a female horse or other equine animal especially when fully mature or of breeding age.” The name Stallions is an awful, uninformed choice that will demean both the boys and girls that will attend and play for the school for years to come. The Tooele County School District should hold a re-vote to determine the best mascot that will represent everyone at the school before they have the name and image of their folly all over the school for everyone to ridicule.
Aaron Metcalfe
Stansbury Park