Heh, I'm a little short of "furious" but something obviously went wrong.
Did Mr. Luck not do due diligence with the director of UH's Mexican-American Studies program, who steadfastly refuses to wear a Houston 1836 tshirt? Was Rumbo simply trying to generate interest in its newspaper in pushing this controversy? Did Luck neglect them? What went wrong?
The PR angle is the most interesting!
I can understand why the Mexican-American community would be upset with the 1836 moniker, because as someone with British ancestry, I am greatly offended by the nickname of Philadelphia's NBA franchise.
Even though my ancestors emigrated here in the 1800s and my ancestry has truly been American for decades, I still closely identify with my British heritage. In fact, it's more important to me than my U.S. citizenship. Thus, the use of the name " '76ers " only serves to open painful, hurtful old wounds and is callously insensitive to me and everyone of British ancestry.
Even though the Revolutionary War happened 230 years ago, to me it seems like only yesterday. Undoubtedly, the Mexican-American community in Texas still feels the pain of the 170-year-old War of Texas Independence.
Kevin, your comment confused me until I re-read my post and realized I had included the "furious" part with your use of the term "professional sensitives," which I love. Sorry for that ... didn't mean to imply that you were furious. I just wanted to use your term and I linked to it to explain where I got it from!
Russell:
I don't think assimilated Americans of Mexican heritage really care about 1836. I think it was more about politicians and others worried they would be offended that caused this.
At the same time, as you know, my mother is British and she did not like to celebrate the Fourth of July, seriously. She wasn't angry about it ... it just wasn't her thing and she would comment about it all the time. So in that respect, I can understand how newcomers from Mexico wouldn't be too keen on 1836.
What's MOST interesting is that history tells us that Hispanics don't even follow MLS. It's too easy to watch Mexican football on television.
Russell, you are a high-powered PR professional ... if you were hired by Houston 1836 today, what would you do to fix this mess????
High powered PR professional? You must have me confused with someone else.
My tongue-in-cheek post was intended to poke fun at the absurdity of all of this. It seems we are getting to the point where we can no longer acknowledge historical fact because we might offend someone due to PC run amock.
If I moved to Vietnam and became a Vietnamese citizen, should I get my panties in a wad every April 30 when "Liberation Day" is celebrated to commemorate the fall of Saigon, the reunification of Vietnam, and the end of the "American War," as it's known there? Should I be offended because they decide to name the new pro soccer franchise the "Ho Chi Minh City 1975" because of my American heritage? Or should I learn to deal with it because I chose to live there?
In the immortal words of Don Henley and Glenn Frey, I think it's time that everyone "Get Over It." For God's sake, it happened 170 years ago. It is what it is. Deal with it.
I just realized that in my rant I never actually answered your question. I probably would have done the same thing they did (change the name), but only if I knew it would be a detriment to the bottom line (i.e., sponsorships) not to do so. I sure wouldn't change the name just to not hurt someone's feelings. One thing I've learned in my years as a "high-powered public relations executive" is that you can rarely make everyone happy, so you have to decide who and what is most important and try to make them happy.
This is a great post, John. It's one of those situations where people always think they'd know what to do in hindsight. In reality: stuff happens.
I would say this though: with something like a team name, what's the point in risking a controversy of ANY kind? Just because you think the name is cool? Not a good enough reason. If you're worried enough about it to "vet" it with Hispanics, that should be your first clue that you should look for another name.
Yes, 90 percent of the time the team owners would have nothing to worry about -- but why take the 10 percent risk just because you like the name? It's not worth the tradeoff. There are lots of good names out there, including betters ones than 1836.
First, let me say I love the term "professional sensitives." What a perfect concept.
Second, if I was counseling the team, I'd say be steadfast, hold the line. They did the right thing by asking the Latino community leaders and they got solid buy-in with the exception of a few "professional sensitives." Now, they should run with it. By backing down, they look soft and they open themselves to future speculation on everything from the width of the seats in the stadium to the menu at the concession stand.
I counsel my clients to define their brand and then use that brand to drive every decision the organization makes. In this case, Texas Proud sure sounds like a winner of a brand promise. Every Texan I've ever met walked a little taller, talked a little louder and had a little swagger in everything they did. The same should be true for the team. Swagger is what makes American soccer a little less beautiful than the soccer in the rest of the world and a little more, well, American.
Tactically, I'd be encouraging the team to work with the Latino community by supporting youth soccer leagues, literacy programs and families-in-need programs. Build the roster with more than a few Mexican league and Latino players. Include authentic Mexican food on the concession stand menu. Hire a Latino to deliver Spanish language radio broadcasts on a Spanish language station.
I don't buy the earlier comment that Mexican-Americans don't watch MLS soccer. If that were true, there wouldn't be a Chivas USA team and the men's national team wouldn't have played all those friendlies in LA over the last decade. Latinos in America are a key audience for MLS and the individual teams should embrace them, yes, but not kowtow to them. That's the fastest way to lose their respect, in my opinion.
I would hardly think of this as a 'mess'.
If the name were to have remained 1836, it would give many in the community , a
chance to root for the visiting team. I
didn't care for 1836 as a team name, it
seemed lame, and for a team that probably
won't be here for very many years, let's
just find something else to get rankled
about.
The name was definitely a little too Anglo-oriented.
I suggest changing it to Houston Tejanos as a counterpart to the Houston Texans (Texan = anglicization of Tejas). Unless Texan is too offensive as well.
The name 1836 really does not capture the independent, fighting spirit of Houstonians and Texans, especially us Hispanics.
Replace the shadow logo of Sam Houston with a logo of the Tejano patriot at San Jacinto yelling “Recuerdo el Alamo” who is said to have singlehandedly slain 25 Mexican Centralists (Santanistas) at San Jacinto including Col. Batres before they could restrain him.
This is of course unless modern Mexican-Americans really feel Santa Anna is their hero of all time and represents what they are--which is ridiculous.
The rally cry for the new team should be “Recuerdo el Alamo” and if you;re uncomfortable with Spanish, then "Remember the Alamo."
Thanks, everyone, for your comments.
Mark ... I especially like your advice on using the brand to drive decision-making. I honestly believe that had the team had more upfront time, they could have accomplished many of the things you suggested and turned this into a non-issue.
Despite what non-soccer people think about the name, Houston 1836 was HUGELY popular among soccer fans here -- the people who will buy tickets and support the club. It's a shame that it didn't work out.
In truth, however, the 1836 name will live on as part of supporters' clubs and team lore. So it really adds some depth to a team that doesn't have much of a history in the city.
Still looking for more input. Can anyone add to Mark's thoughts???
I'm still concerned with the image the team has given by backing down. Machismo is not what this team is about, and I would think that the Mexican-American community will apply that kind of reasoning. Those that raised the issue will never go to a game, no matter the name. They sound like poeople who just want to complain.
The next thing you know, small groups of professional sensitives will be complaining about seats that are too narrow, the coffee that's too hot, and the cheerleaders that are too narrow and too hot...no, wait, they don't have cheerleaders in soccer. That's up to the fans!
And the fans - the people who will buy the tickets - have already weiged in on this issue with a resounding YES vote, as have the Mexican-American business and political leaders. Someone - obviously not the LA ownership - has got to stand up and say enough is enough. We can't please everybody.
Texans have the stones do do the right thing. Too bad the Los Angeleans don't.
I'm in mostly white Iowa, so I admittedly don't have the frame of reference to dive into this like I wish, so I'm really interested in more comments from Mexican-Americans, such as Epigmenio Gonzales from above.
John; Great post. I like the Corporate Social Responsibility idea, get into the Mexican community and build networks that will also ultimately support the team becuase of its spirit of giveing, no matter the name.
As for changing the name, it had less to do with backing down and more to do with the sponsors. If the sponsors told them to change it, they have no choice really. I like the Tejanos name, or how about the Texas Pride? Also, can they do some real research here? Just talking to a few leaders won't cut it, they need to have some names vetted through research.
Mark and Kami:
Great thoughts ... I think the biggest problem here is time. This was done in a rushed manner due to the circumstances, and sometimes things backfire when you don't have an opportunity to do proper due diligence.
I believe the club will do many of the things you suggest to reach out to the Hispanic community. But how can the team reach out to those who are angry about the name being changed??
Speaking from an Angle-viewpoint...I can't see the fuss. History is history, and as long as the name isn't overtly hurtful, I don't see the problem with it.
However, the controversy over the name seems to point to a deeper problem in the club - and maybe the community. If the team is going to cave because of a perceived outcry over a year, then its leaders don't seem to be too confident in their ability to draw a crowd in the first place.
Of course, all this seems to be working out...If you didn't know about the team, or the name before, you probably do now. "There's no such thing as bad publicity."
Let's just hope that I can get an 1836 t-shirt before they're all sold out.
Rob:
I was at Soccer 4 All in Stafford over the weekend and they had a few Houston 1836 shirts left. But you better act fast!
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