05:13 AM
11/23/24
11/23/24
November 07, 2013
Fresno State's Mascot Also Used by Gang: A California street gang that began in prison calls itself the Bulldogs and has caused problems for Fresno State University, which is popular in the state's agricultural interior and has a Bulldogs mascot. Sales of the school's athletic gear have increased tenfold, often for the wrong reasons. In 2011, Stephen Maciel, a father of four, was shot and killed by a Bulldogs gang rival in a liquor store parking lot wearing a red Fresno State shirt. He had no gang affiliations. "If you love sports, you want to be all geared up in the team's colors. But I don't wear it any more, and I don't let my kids wear it. It's too dangerous," said Maciel's widow, Marisol Aguirre.
It's like the Bloods (red) and Crips (blue) wearing caps with those colors. Don't know what can be done; Phillies and Royals wouldn't change to green; Bulldogs wouldn't (and shouldn't) change its longtime mascot. Thankfully, it is a small minority (numerical) of people who behave in this manner.