Journal 6, Kelly Ramirez

When reading this article, I automatically thought about an issue we’ve had on our university about being referred to as Seminoles. While our university has fostered a relationship with the Seminole Tribe of Florida and emphasized that the Seminole is our symbol, not mascot, it still created controversy on football game days. Students and other FSU football fans began wearing head dresses to the games as a way to show their Seminole spirit and pride.

However, people called it out as cultural appropriation rather than a sign of fan affection. This is an example of a bare repetition because it is not what the Native Americans who wear head dresses wanted it to mean. The assemblage of the fans created a new meaning for the symbol that did not benefit their community. Its use for attire at a sports game took away from its original significance and use. Moreover, it was incorrect because the head dresses they used belonged to another tribe, not the Seminoles. This gave an inaccurate illustration of what they were trying to represent. Harmful assemblages, especially to people’s culture, should always be challenged. Head dresses were banned at FSU football games last summer.

I think an example of an ethical assemblage would be the FSU jerseys.

As I mentioned before, our university has a special relationship with the Seminole Tribe of Florida. They have been working with them in order to accurately portray their tribe’s values. In this assemblage, the tribe and university worked closely with Nike to include the Seminole symbols on the jersey. Around the neckline are the symbols for arrow, man on horse, and fire. This is an ethical assemblage because it reflected what the Seminole Tribe of Florida wanted for their representation and audience. They are allowing parts of their culture to be shared in a non-traditional way.

The circulation of assemblages can be harmful to its meaning. It may be distributed to audiences who may interpret differently than the intended meaning. I don’t think fair use completely prevents the creation of bare repetition because we see it happen all the time, especially within digital media.