Texas High School’s ‘Cotton Pickers’ Mascot Draws Outrage

Social media is outraged after finding out a high school in Texas still sports the mascot the “Cotton Pickers.” 

The revelation was brought to light by KIll 3 Sports reporter Chris Thomasson, who tweeted a video on Friday (September 4) of the Robstown High School football team taking the field for their season opener against the London High School Pirates in suburban Corpus Christi.

“The Robstown Cotton Pickers come out before their season opener against London tonight,” Thomasson captioned the tweet.

Thomasson later apologized for the tweet, saying he didn’t mean to cause any controversy and added that he usually refers to the team as the “Pickers.” He also attempted to provide context, claiming “Cotton Pickers” derives from a Latino background, many of whom for generations have picked cotton for a living. He insists it doesn’t come from the slavery stereotype, even though Texas was a slave state prior to and during the Civil War.

The Robstown school board also recently vowed to keep the mascot after consulting the community.

Thomoasson did amit that it’s probably best to change given its connotation to slavery and the continued horrors that befell African Americans during Reconstruction.

No word yet on whether the Robstown school board will reconsider changing the mascot.