Late last year, University of North Dakota ditched the “Fighting Sioux” name and I think the first 2016 ditching to cleanse the institution of bad historical associations is Amherst College.
As we read here, the school is (finally!) getting rid of its “Lord Jeff” mascot. You see, Lord Jeff was British general Jeffrey Amherst, who advocated genocide by giving blankets infected with smallpox to the Indians. Everyone at Amherst can now rest at night, since the school has banished Lord Jeff.
Except — wouldn’t a real cleansing require changing the name of the college?