NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. – Rutgers University students want to “diversify” the school’s white Scarlet Knight mascot by creating other knights of the gay, black, Latino, Asian and “third gender” varieties.

The Rutgers University Student Assembly recently passed a bill to add multiple Scarlet Knights in addition to the existing white, blue-eyed mascot, student assembly parliamentarian Emmet Brennan told The Daily Targum, the student newspaper.

“What we were thinking – the way the bill’s laid out – it’s not defined that we need an Asian knight, a black knight, a Latino knight,” Brennan said. “That we would really leave up to the different student organizations … and basically the student body as a whole to determine how many knights they’d like and what these knights would represent.”

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Brennan said he noticed the current Scarlet Knight mascot is white, with blue eyes, and that “does not seem right.”

“Our mascot does not represent how diverse we are as a school,” he told the Daily Targum.

The bill passed the student assembly, “and it wasn’t by a slim margin,” Brennan said, though some are concerned the idea to diversify the Scarlet Knight might offend some people.

Brennan contacted several ethnic-based student clubs in an effort to get them “all working together at the same table” to craft new mascots, and hopes forward ideas from the collaboration to university officials.

He said funding for any new mascots could come from a variety of sources, but the intent is for the university to foot the bill, either through university or alumni funding, instead of using student assembly funding, the Targum reports.

“I would rather not spend student money on something I can get someone else to pay for,” Brennan said.

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Students, meanwhile, seem split on the idea.

“In a nutshell, I think it’s a good idea because obviously Rutgers is so diverse,” sophomore Lamar Nero told the student newspaper. “Not saying I have a problem with a white mascot, but at the same time I don’t have a problem with diversifying it.”

Junion Sneha Lakhani said she thinks diversity is important, but changing the mascot is not.

“I feel like it’s a bit far-fetched, but I appreciate the idea of accepting more,” she said. “But I don’t feel like (diversity) has to be shown in that manner as well because Rutgers does a good job of showing it in every other way.”

Brennan acknowledged that many alumni likely won’t like the idea, but the fact that students want to add to the current mascot, rather than replace him, should quell their concerns, he said.

“I mean, obviously you’re going to have people who are going to say, you know, we’re destroying tradition,” he said. “It’s inevitable. There’s always going to be people who complain, but I think we won’t receive that much pushback because we are keeping the current knight.”

Comments about the proposed change on the New Jersey News 12 site makes it clear Brennan likely underestimated the alumni and public opposition.

“Diversity leads to ‘perversity’ … there’s nothing wrong with the current mascot,” John Longo wrote. “Grow up you radical racist bean head ‘students!’ No more money to Rutgers Alumni Association from this grad, and I suggest fellow alumni do the same. John Longo, Rutgers Class of 78.”

Frank LeRose also believes the change is a stupid idea.

“For the love of God … doesn’t anyone care about history anymore? Unless you create a rainbow colored bi-gendered mascot who gets older and younger and practices all religions, you’re not going to please everyone!” he wrote.

“The Scarlet Knight has been Rutgers’ mascot since the beginning. Stop trying to stomp on history. The Rutgers respect for what and who has come before is one of my favorate parts about the school. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

John Skoll kept his comments brief.

“Get lost,” he wrote. “1980 alumni.”