Northwest Nazarene Drops ‘Crusaders’ as Name

Northwest Nazarene University announced Monday that its teams would no longer be known as the Crusaders and would from now on be known as the Nighthawks. "The Board of Trustees acknowledged that a crusader was historically understood as one who is committed to a worthy cause," said a statement from the university. "However, the board observed that more recently there has been a growing diversity of opinion regarding the mascot and nickname. Students, campus community members and alumni have expressed concern with the nickname and mascot because of its association with violence and destruction."

On the university's website, many alumni criticized the change. Wrote one alumnus, "Sadly, liberalism, 'feel good' and 'let's not offend' PC has now weakened and destroyed the (Brave Heart) strength of we warriors for Christ and our Kingdom."