OU Mascot Chief Ouampi

Abstract/Description: A white male Municipal University of Omaha student portraying the university's Indian mascot on an unidentified hillside. This may be on the sidelines of a football field. Sports fans and cars can be seen in the background. The Municipal University of Omaha/University of Nebraska at Omaha mascot, called "Ouampi," was abolished in May 1971, along with the UNO sports team name of "Indians." UNO would be briefly without a mascot, until "Mavericks" was selected in October 1971. The university now recognizes that the Ouampi mascot is offensive. When the university first selected this mascot in 1950, school mascots based on Native American stereotypes were common. Many artifacts from University history from the period from 1950 through 1971 depict this caricature, and it is difficult to present materials from this era without showing or acknowledging this mascot. We accept this as a part of our history, as we accept that the 1971 mascot change represented a positive step for the university.
Subject(s): Football
Omaha (Neb.)
Omaha University
Omaha University -- Football
Tangerine Bowl 1955
University of Nebraska at Omaha
University of Nebraska at Omaha -- Football

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