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University of Cincinnati urged to remove Marge Schott's name from stadium

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University of Cincinnati baseball players past and present are calling for the school to remove the name of former Cincinnati Reds owner Marge Schott from its baseball stadium due to her racist and anti-Semitic views.

Former Bearcats player Jordan Ramey started a petition to change the stadium's name. As of Monday night, it had reached over 6,800 signatures.

Bearcats pitcher Nathan Moore, who is black, wrote on Twitter that he only learned about Schott's history recently and was shocked to find out the views she held are common knowledge.

Former MLB All-Star Kevin Youkilis, a Cincinnati native and school alumnus, tweeted his support for Moore and the move to remove Schott's name. Youkilis, who is Jewish, revealed he previously declined to donate to the school upon realizing his name would then stand alongside hers on the stadium.

Cincinnati athletic director John Cunningham said in a statement Monday that the school is aware of the petition and the movement to rename the stadium.

"The department of athletics is providing the university administration any information or context they may need to better understand this issue from the perspectives of our student-athletes," Cunningham said, according to Justin Williams of The Athletic.

Schott was the majority owner of MLB's Reds from 1984-1999. Although the Reds won a World Series under her watch, she was widely criticized both for her style of ownership and her frequent use of racial slurs and remarks against blacks, Jews, and Asians. In 1999, MLB forced her to sell the Reds after she made comments praising Adolf Hitler.

The Bearcats' baseball team has played in Marge Schott Stadium since 2004. Originally known as UC Stadium, it was renamed for Schott in 2006, two years after her death.

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