Should Coon Rapids, Minnesota change its name?

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

I can assure you it will not happen regardless. Was proposed by the city council in early 2006 and there was a massive outrage among the residents and it went down in flames.

[Beet]

Lol. There's a county in Virginia called Dinwiddie county, that I got pulled over in, and in the citation the officer wrote "Dimwiddie." That was worth about 5 minutes' worth of jokes. I'd imagine this has about the same value.

[minionofmidas]

What to? "Raccoon Pits"?

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

Should Chris Coons change his last name?

[cinyc]

Should politically correct nonsense be ridiculed so that people stop proposing politically correct nonsense?

[Ban my account ffs!]

yes.  They should change it to "Coon Gulch"

[Dgov]

No.  A truly colorblind society shouldn't care so long as people know it's not an intentional slur.

Reminds me of the South park superhero spoof episode.  Cartman was "The Coon" and no one cared.

[Nhoj]

Did they want to change it because of the term Coon? or was there other reasons?
Anyways no its got a rather unique name so it should stay.

[Lief 🗽]

No.  A truly colorblind society shouldn't care so long as people know it's not an intentional slur.

Reminds me of the South park superhero spoof episode.  Cartman was "The Coon" and no one cared.

Or another classic South Park episode:

[minionofmidas]

Did they want to change it because of the term Coon? or was there other reasons?

It was just one silly city councillor.
And yeah, he felt "coon" had "negative connotations".

Which you could interprete as saying he wanted it renamed because people might think there are Blacks there. (Although I'm sure that's not actually what he meant.)

The name has a surprisingly short pedigree as a municipal name, btw - the former Anoka Township got renamed in 1952 when it was incorporated as a single Village.
It's named for the Coon Rapids Dam... whose construction forty years previously destroyed the actual rapids of Coon Creek.

[Dgov]

No.  A truly colorblind society shouldn't care so long as people know it's not an intentional slur.

Reminds me of the South park superhero spoof episode.  Cartman was "The Coon" and no one cared.

Or another classic South Park episode:

. . . .Um, you know when Conservatives accuse you of seeing racism everywhere you look whether it exists there or not?  Stuff like that is why.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

No.  A truly colorblind society shouldn't care so long as people know it's not an intentional slur.

Reminds me of the South park superhero spoof episode.  Cartman was "The Coon" and no one cared.

Or another classic South Park episode:

Not quite, as the name obviously refers to raccoons. One reason why they also make sure to have a raccoon on the city logo no doubt.

[Free Palestine]

They should change their name to African-American Rapids.

[tpfkaw]

They should change their name to African-American Rapids.

African-American History Month Rapids, you racist.

[Sewer]

They should change their name to African-American Rapids.

African-American History Month Rapids, you racist.

Dude, what are you guys smoking?

[Frink]

I'm mixed race and it doesn't really matter to me. I don't see why anyone should give two sh**ts honestly.

[Frink]

They should change their name to African-American Rapids.

African-American History Month Rapids, you racist.

Dude, what are you guys smoking?

I don't know but if it makes me view reality like that I want some of it!

[King]

Racoons have been around longer than black people.  Coon Rapids stays.

[Ronnie]

Does "coon" refer to the word's definition in Farsi or African American?

[Verily]

Does "coon" refer to the word's definition in Farsi or African American?

Does "coon" mean something amusing/offensive in Farsi? Do tell.

Anyway, I had absolutely no awareness that this thread would be about race from the title. Shows how little the word "coon" is still associated with racism, IMO (maybe not in other parts of the country?).

[Ronnie]

Does "coon" refer to the word's definition in Farsi or African American?

Does "coon" mean something amusing/offensive in Farsi? Do tell.

Anyway, I had absolutely no awareness that this thread would be about race from the title. Shows how little the word "coon" is still associated with racism, IMO (maybe not in other parts of the country?).

It means "ass" in Farsi.  Please note that I'm not Persian.  I'm just well adept with their profanities.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Does "coon" refer to the word's definition in Farsi or African American?

Neither. It refers to raccoons.

Does "coon" refer to the word's definition in Farsi or African American?

Does "coon" mean something amusing/offensive in Farsi? Do tell.

Anyway, I had absolutely no awareness that this thread would be about race from the title. Shows how little the word "coon" is still associated with racism, IMO (maybe not in other parts of the country?).

Most people here actually feel the same way. When I was at Dude Fest 2007 I was talking and drinking with some other guys hanging out at the same place and mentioned the only time since I started college I stayed somewhere other than home or here was my parents friends in Coon Rapids and everyone started laughing and was like "There's actually a place in Minnesota called Coon Rapids?" I was surprised, I had heard of the slur before but I always just figured it was obviously not that and instead a reference to raccoons (people in northern Minnesota and northern Wisconsin often refer to them as just "coons" too and the racial connotation is probably completely unknown.)

[jimrtex]

The name has a surprisingly short pedigree as a municipal name, btw - the former Anoka Township got renamed in 1952 when it was incorporated as a single Village.
It's named for the Coon Rapids Dam... whose construction forty years previously destroyed the actual rapids of Coon Creek.

The rapids were on the Mississippi, near the confluence of Coon Creek.  Before the dam was built, the Mississippi was (sometimes) navigable to St Cloud.  When Congress authorized building of the dam in 1900, the law specified that it could be built between Coon Rapids and the city of Minneapolis.  The legislation specifically required that the dam had to permit logs (timbered) to pass through.  There were about 1000 people living at the dam site during construction - it may be that it was known as Coon Rapids.

By 1914, there was a Coon Rapids station on the Minneapolis, Anoka, and Cuyana Range Railroad.  Oldtimers remember riding the train into Minneapolis.

The city of Anoka was incorporated in 1844, and the rest of the township remained Anoka Township.  In the 1910 census Anoka city had about 4000 persons, and Anoka Township about 400.  So when the unincorporated township incorporated in 1952, it had to choose a new name.

Famous graduates of Anoka HS: Michele Bachmann, Garrison Keiler, and Brianna Scurry.

Surprisingly, the city councilmen is still in office until the end of 2012, so he must have been re-elected.

[Free Palestine]

They should change their name to African-American Rapids.

African-American History Month Rapids, you racist.

How about Jolly African-American Rapids?

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

They should change their name to African-American Rapids.

African-American History Month Rapids, you racist.

How about Jolly African-American Rapids?

None of this is funny.