USM to rename Dixie Darlings dance team

A Mississippi university says it is considering renaming its dance team.

The University of Southern Mississippi’s marching band announced it will select a new name to replace the Dixie Darlings nickname the dance team has had since 1954.

A statement from band leaders says the name change, as well as replacing the song ‘Are you from Dixie’ which the dancers emerge onto the field with, will help maintain ‘a safe environment for the students.’

Dixie is a nickname for the Southern U.S. states that formed the pro-slavery confederacy. Critics have said the term is racially insensitive.