Politicized chants at sporting events reflect negatively on Tech
- By: Caroline Ragland
Columnist - 13 hrs ago
- 0
Tweet: Tech students should stop politicized chants at college games.
The student section at Texas Tech home games is notorious for being wild. Sitting there, especially close to the field, is usually a positive, fun experience. But lately, a small, but loud portion of the student section has started… chanting. These politicized chants need to stop.
Let games be a place where the only enemy is UT. Let us come together, despite our differences, to bond in our shared disappointment for our defense and annoyance for having to wait in line for an entire quarter for a bottle of water. Let us talk about how we can’t wait for basketball season and how we miss Patrick Mahomes. It’s time to stop alienating our fellow Red Raider.
This chant is not funny, no matter who the president is or what their policies have been. The chant also becomes disrespectful when students start yelling it when a player is down or after the national anthem. Everyone has a right to their own opinion, but that doesn’t mean we have to hear it. It’s annoying to the student section, it doesn’t reflect well on the university, and it’s causing problems in other sections for families.
Many people at games don’t care about someone’s opinion on domestic or foreign policy. Most fans want to watch the game and pretend to know what’s going on. I, along with many people in the student section, love going to games, enjoying the traditions, the chants and the endless standing. It’s an amazing experience unique to Tech. Few other colleges have such unique programs as Tech.
Sporting events was one of the things that sold many of us on Tech. But a very vocal minority has overstepped the line of exercising their right to free speech, and their words ruin the experience. By chanting politicized statements at games, many can feel alienated from the university. While some think this is funny, it is really time to stop.
Another reason to stop the polarized chants is it doesn’t reflect well on Tech. The more politicized the game becomes, the more people will be unwilling to attend.
Tech fans are already known to be especially rowdy. Between throwing tortillas at kickoff, the many times Tech fans have torn down another team’s goalpost, or the rioting after the men’s basketball team made it into the Final Four a few years ago, these chants only worsen our reputation as the backwater redheaded stepchild of Texas Division One college.
In truth, Tech has excellent programs, a beautiful campus and amazing student life. Insensitive chants ruin the little credit Tech is given.
While it is annoying the student section and reflects poorly on the university, the chant also alienates fans of Tech sports in general. Ticket holders do not pay to hear some college student’s opinion. They pay to watch the game. Students do not come to the game to be bombarded with politics, they come to have fun.
It isn’t fair for the student section to have to hear it, but it’s rude and disrespectful to the rest of the crowd. The chant has become so loud, it’s bleeding out into the other areas of the stadium. It’s offensive to the parents and children who come to enjoy the game. These chants are turning future Red Raiders away.
It’s dividing people into a place where we’re supposed to be united. In a country where everything is polarized, let a college game be a place to come together and enjoy a break from the chaos.
Nothing is stopping the chant from happening. There is no penalty or punishment against freedom of speech, but that doesn’t mean this chant should continue. It doesn’t matter what political party you align with, or who you voted for in 2016, 2020 or even who you plan to vote for in 2024, let sporting events be the one place where we can find a common ground. Stop politicized chants. Nobody is listening.
