Flognonian: Having a pole dancing group is cool… but only sometimes?

As a member of the Poler Bears, I could go into depth on a list of challenges that the groups has faced in order to stay alive as a club on this campus, with the main issue being that the team is not provided an on-campus space to practice or perform. However, today I’m ranting on a simpler topic that really should just not be an issue: Apparel.Allow me to explain. The Poler Bears want apparel that says “Brown University Pole Dancing” on it, since the group is an official Category III Dance Team—we are recognized by Brown and fortunate enough to receive baseline funding. However, the request to order apparel with these words has been denied—multiple times through multiple companies—because Brown University repeatedly rejects the companies’ requests to print the name “Brown University” alongside the words “Pole Dancing”.Some Background Information:When you design apparel with “Brown University” printed on it, the company doing the printing typically needs Brown’s permission. These requests go through a third party, Learfield Licensing Partners, which acts as a go-between for Brown and the printing company. Someone in the Brown marketing team has to check that they approve and then, bam, you can order your apparel!Email exchanges with companies (who were very helpful and accommodating) indicate that someone at Brown gave these instructions: The company could not reveal the department or person who gave these instructions due to the third party exchange through Learfield Licensing. We have contacted the Brown marketing team and they are also unsure of the identity of this Mysterious Rejecter. One company stated, "We have been discouraged by the University of giving customer direct contact information." Another company had to wait two months to receive a response, and when it finally came, it involved contracts the company needed to sign in order to get a license (?) that costs extra money and has an unclear function.Let’s imagine that this is an honest mistake. Maybe someone believes a few students are “messing around” and trying to design funny Spring Weekend apparel. But after receiving this request many times, you would think that the approval-denier would simply Google, “Brown University Pole Dancing” and subsequently learn of the Poler Bear’s legitimacy. Unfortunately, it appears that the Mysterious Rejecter could not care less about the team’s affiliation with Brown.I recognize that this is a minor issue. However, it is regretful that some may not understand the team’s efforts on this campus to create a safe and exploratory environment (I’m looking at you, Mysterious Rejecter), and wow I wanted to rant about it. The Poler Bears are frequently mentioned on tours as a fun fact about Brown and they annually perform for a large crowd at ADOCH, indicating that the team is indeed used to represent the school to prospective students… so why can’t we have the opportunity to discuss our position to the Mysterious Rejector? Why the anonymity? Let's talk!Luckily, we found a loophole and can still **embroider** the apparel without the Mysterious Rejector’s approval (hair flip emoji)! So you WILL be seeing the Poler Bears around campus, sportin’ the fact that we are Brown University/RISD Pole Dancers.Lastly, The Poler Bears would like to give a big thank you to the companies who have worked with us. They have been very helpful and communicative throughout the process. The biggest thank you goes to the President of SAO, Isaac Albanese, who has advocated for the team’s legitimacy and defended our identity as a club. Images via Jillian Hojsak.