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Sam Garcia Professor Batty English 115 2 December, 2013 A Matar Un Matador Other-ing is a prevalent and inescapable part of the world; by other-ing I mean the systematic differentiation based upon certain qualities. Humans naturally categorize based on the differences that do not seem recognizable and in turn create assumptions. Animals are categorized. People of color are categorized. Individuals from different socioeconomic backgrounds are categorized. These separations are where stereotypes are derived from. People ridicule cultural traditions that are not in line with their own which then causes the victims of the ridicule to want to create change. Many aspects of the United States have been changed in order to be more inclusive and less offensive. Smaller scale impacts have been made for the greater good of a race of people. The CSUN matador has come under fire recently as it is seen as offensive. One side argues that matadors are a symbol of animal cruelty and mistreatment. However, the other side makes the point that matadors are an immutable part of Spanishspeaking culture. I personally believe that the Matador should follow suit of other mascots and be replaced to be a more sensitive and appropriate mascot. The CSUN matador is a symbol of animal cruelty, given the history of bullfighting. An article titled Bullfighting Ban and the Horns of a Dilemma for Spain written for the Yorkshire Post, a newspaper in England, addresses the decision made by Spanish parliament on bullfighting and its banning. Catalonia, a region within Spain, has banned bullfighting as many of its citizens saw it as an act of animal cruelty. Many animal rights activists gathered outside

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the Catalan parliament before the vote and were carrying posters of bleeding animals to show their support of the ban. Although the people of Catalonia recognize that bullfighting is traditional, they push for change and put forward the animals welfare in this decision. The Matador clearly should not be used as a mascot as many view bullfighting and everything associated with it as cruelty towards animals. Secondly, the process in which the bull is killed illustrates even further that the matador denotes animal cruelty. In the article At Five in the Afternoon by Stephen Morris, Morris goes into full detail about the process in which a matador kills the bull. His first-hand experience provides vivid imagery of the crowd going wild as the matador is introduced and then even louder as the bull enters the arena. Morris illustrates with his words the whole spectacle; the matador stabbing the bull eventually having up to six pics plunged into his back. The vivid portrayal does not end there as he also recounts blood dramatically [beginning] to run down the sides of [the bulls] body and the matador killing the bull with a sword at the climax. The violent death is painful to the animal as it is given a slow death and has put up with the misery for a long time until it released only through being killed. Matadors are cruel to animals which exemplifies that the CSUN Matador is a figure of torture and mistreatment to animals. The CSUN matador is a symbol of animal cruelty and should not be the mascot. Though many would argue that the matador is an important and historic piece of culture to the Spanish-speaking world, the violence it promotes does not justify the argument. For example, the article Bullfighting Ban and the Horns of a Dilemma for Spain illustrates the split of people vying for the banning of bullfighting while others want to keep it continuing to preserve their culture. The voting in Catalonias government caused a split between the people as many stood outside the courtroom expressing their opinions. The animal rights activists held

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their signs as defenders of bullfighting waved Catalan flags and banners proclaiming libertad y toros (freedom and bulls). The sport caused a split between the people and brought out their beliefs of the sport whether to defend their culture or the well-being of animals. The matador is a part of Spanish culture and its people truly think the sport should not be threatened as erasing part of a culture would be equivalent to erasing a race of people. The sport should be stopped however as it still brings suffering to innocent animals and promotes violence in the Spanishspeaking community. In a similar way, many areas around Spain want to preserve the sport for its relevance and impact on their culture. In the article Bullfighting Can Be Murder, the author Leonard Picker interviews Jason Webbster, author of the book Or the Bull Kills You. Picker asks Webbster about the popularity of the sport in which he responds with the decision of bullfighting in Catalonia. This decision caused other regions, such as Madrid and Valencia, hav[ing] declared it a cultural heritage asset, giving it some kind of legal protection. Other parts of Spain value the sport as it is seen as significant to their cultural identity and have in fact embraced it after the decision in Catalonia. Bullfighting will forever be a part of Spanish culture as many believe that it should not be diminished from existence. However, the simplicity of the argument clearly shows that wanting to keep the sport is mostly a selfish desire for the spectators. They do not consider the feelings of the bull and how it goes through such a shameful display for entertainment; in this aspect, bullfighting should be banned. Matadors and bullfighting serve as paramount pieces of Spanish-speaking heritage but should not be protected. I personally believe that the CSUN matador should be changed given the circumstances of other mascots. Many mascots have recently been changed due to their offensive nature. An infamous example of this is with the Washington Redskins. The article Would You Call Me a Redsk*n to My Face? written by Brian Cladoosby discussed the origins of the term redskin and

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proves how offensive it truly is. Cladoosby describes the history of the term by explaining how bounty hunters would would kill Native people then rip the skin from their bodies in order to receive payment. Native Americans have dealt with many hardships in the past (and today) especially with racism and the term. Although many may not see it as offensive, redskin is still racial slur that should not be used as a sports team mascot as it mocks the struggle of Native Americans. There is nothing honorable about using ones misfortunes for anything positive. The CSUN matador is not honorable as it does not accurately portray Spanish-speaking culture and shows barbarianism instead. The Matador should be changed in order for the school to not be seen as offensive or ignorant. A similar situation occurred at a school in Southern California. Forget the Redskins, theres a high school in California with a mascot thats at least as offensive by Cameron Smith tells the ongoing controversy surrounding the Coachella Valley High School Mascot, the Arabs. The mascot is an offensive exaggeration of the physical features that are stereotypically given to people from the Middle-East such as a large nose, heavy beard, and wearing a Kaffiay. This is seen as offensive by not only the race of people portrayed but also the community there in Coachella. The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee gave their opinion on the mascot by saying There's a lot more to Arabs, Arab Americans and the Arab culture and heritage then what's being depicted such as bombers, billionaires or belly dancers. These negative stereotypes are not an accurate portrayal of Arab people and in turn cause a lot of quarreling. The CSUN matador should be changed to avoid argument in the future about politically correct portrayals of any race of people. The matador, although a part of CSUN culture, should be changed to a better reflection of the culture present at California State University Northridge.

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On one hand, the matador is portrays animal cruelty and suffering. Despite being an intrinsic part of Spanish-speaking culture, bullfighting is outdated and should be banned. I still firmly believe that the Matador should be replaced in order to avoid controversy. Even though it may not seem like a big deal, small changes in order to promote the real portrayal of a people is vital to people having their voice heard without prejudice. Minorities have to deal with more stigma than the average person as there are unusual expectations put in place that deter one from achieving success. For example, as a Hispanic male I was expected to get into a gang, abuse drugs and alcohol, and do poorly in school. I defied every one of those stereotypes because I believed that change should start from the smallest scale and be brought up eventually. Now, there are more Hispanic students applying for and being accepted into college; other races too have debunked many stereotypes placed on them. Without the weight of negativity and stereotypes, a race of people can advance so far in society. Stereotypes only serve to harm a people which is why their abolition should be a paramount issue to help our fellow man.

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Works Cited "Bullfighting Ban and the Horns of a Dilemma for Spain." Yorkshire Post. N.p., 28 July 2010. Web. 1 Nov. 2013. Cladoosby, Brian. "Would You Call Me a Redsk*n to My Face?" The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 31 Oct. 2013. Web. 22 Nov. 2013. Morris, Stephen. "At Five in the Afternoon." The Aude Times. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 Nov. 2013 Picker, Leonard. Bullfighting Can Be Murder Publishers Weekly 258.30 (2011): 35. Academic Search Premier. Web. 27 Nov 2013 Smith, Cameron. "Forget the Redskins, theres a high school in California with a mascot thats at least as offensive." Yahoo Sports. N.p., 8 Nov. 2013. Web. 19 Nov. 2013