Will fans still sing The Eyes post-game even if its banned?

[2003TexasGrad]

I just heard Earl Campbell live on The Horn (104.9 FM) say, "That was then and this is now. There is nothing wrong with 'The Eyes of Texas'. Leave 'The Eyes of Texas' alone." I hope he said that same thing directly to these disgruntled athletes so maybe this can die down for a while.

Yes. It ain't 1903 people.

 

[2003TexasGrad]

Agreed. I would say that the song (which began as a satirical skit aimed at the University's president) was long ago repurposed into an anthem of unity and pride among ALL Longhorns.

We are on the same page. The only thing I'll say that's different is my understanding is that they used the line "the eyes of Texas are upon you" because the current president went to Washington University and then president Robert E. Lee would say "the eyes of the south are upon you".... Otherwise it was written to be a school song. The fact that it was performed as a minstrel show wasn't unusual. A lot of songs were performed at those shows. In other words, just cancel everything if that's the standard.

 

[2003TexasGrad]

Perhaps I should have said "probably no more than 5% of the LHB in any given year," but the semantics & numbers are beside the point: that there are (and have been) members of the LHB who are African-American (including 2016 Drum Major Kevin Kwaku) and to my knowledge none of them have publicly raised any kind of issue or objection about playing The Eyes.

Fair. LHB isn't Grambling or Prarie View A&M but in my 5 years at UT I knew a ton of LHB members and never heard a peep about any of this.

 

[earl77]

Wait, doesn't Earl know that black lives matter?

 

[Giovanni Jones]

Fair. LHB isn't Grambling or Prarie View A&M but in my 5 years at UT I knew a ton of LHB members and never heard a peep about any of this.

And I was basing my estimate on the recent years when my daughter was in the LHB. The percentages might have been different when you were at UT.

 

[earl77]

Really, Earl's comments essentially express that "the eyes of Texas" was re imagined many decades ago, and in its current incarnation has never expressed anything but the unity, pride and connection felt by all longhorns for each other.

 

[Statalyzer]

Really, Earl's comments essentially express that "the eyes of Texas" was re imagined many decades ago, and in its current incarnation has never expressed anything but the unity, pride and connection felt by all longhorns for each other.

Agreed. We wouldn't be "re-imagining" it - that was done decades ago - but just "re-emphasizing" what was already there.

he fact that it was performed as a minstrel show wasn't unusual. A lot of songs were performed at those shows.

Pretty much any song that existed at that time was probably at some point performed as part of the same show that also had a blackface / minstrel act as part of the lineup. And the comedic acts at those shows has influenced the entirety of American comedy from then until the present. Dave Chappelle, Mel Brooks, Marx Brothers, Eddie Murphy, etc...