Last month, Joe Rudolph released an Observer article titled “Why releasing the American alligator onto Notre Dame grounds is a good idea.“ Rudolph does make some interesting and potentially valid points about releasing alligators onto Notre Dame’s campus. It is worth considering the alleged benefits that alligators would bring in population reduction efforts, ND football strategy and administrative improvements. These are intriguing suggestions that merit closer examination. However, Rudolph’s overall proposal falls short of practicality, for he fails to see how destructive this plan would be on several levels.
For one, the American alligator is neither native nor suited to the South Bend environment. They usually live in low-elevation areas in warm climates which is what one would find in the South of the U.S., not the Midwest. Rudolph’s argument relies on this fundamental assumption that the alligators would be able to live and proliferate in an environment like South Bend, when in the long-term they cannot. It would be a violation to natural dignity to forcibly relocate alligators from, say, Alachua County, Florida, to St. Joseph County, Indiana. It is practically a death sentence for these creatures and it simply cannot be tolerated or entertained. One of the Seven Themes of Catholic Social Teaching is “Care for God’s Creation,” and this plan to release alligators into an environment for which they are not suited is simply not caring for God’s Creation and violates our Catholic identity as a Catholic university.
Moreover, alligators pose a serious ecological threat to the wildlife living near the lakes as well as a threat to students. There is limited visibility around the lakes when it is dark outside which poses a serious threat especially to early-morning runners or late-night strollers around the lakes. The waterfowl or small mammalian population is not capable of adequately adapting to the new danger of alligators in their habitat. Once again, Catholic Social Teaching is helpful in informing Notre Dame’s administrative decisions here.
Rudolph makes several suggestions that alligators would somehow positively benefit student life and culture here, and these merit closer examination. First, point three states, “They could thin out the excess student body (and cut down costs)!” I must disagree here because I do not believe that any member of the student body should be considered “excess.“ Every single student worked very hard to be here and deserves their place here. This suggestion is reductionist in nature and fails to see the unique contributions that each student brings to the Notre Dame community. Rudolph should, instead, consider how increasing the student population would be more conducive to the long-term goals of the University. Secondly, point 17 states, “It would enable the South Bend Colosseum: Those who break parietals must become gladiators and fight several alligators in front of a packed arena in order to maintain both their honor and their status as an enrolled student at this school!” A product of the manosphere is this unwarranted fascination with Roman history and the Roman Empire. Rudolph fails to see how gladiatorial shows are a blight in the history of sports entertainment, and I am completely content with the family-friendly football games and comedy shows that go on at the stadium. Thirdly, point 23 states, “Alligators are green, reflecting our Irish culture. This would instill the student body with a great sense of pride to be a University of Notre Dame scholar!” Of Rudolph’s many claims, this one seems the most plausible, from the surface at least. However, the issue of branding is already a problem with the new football logo, so I think the timing is not quite right. Additionally, the use of alligators for marketing would probably cause more brand confusion and alienate diehard leprechaun fans.
There are plenty of other topics that Rudolph did not consider and areas that I, due to space constraints, could not adequately explicate. And so, I strongly advise Rudolph to reconsider and revise his argument because it has many flaws in it. There are apparent tensions between this proposal and the University’s commitment to a Catholic identity. There are many practical inconsistencies. He, above all, fails to see the clear and present danger that alligators would bring to the Notre Dame community. Furthermore, I believe it would be in Rudolph’s best interest to consider other options for animals to release onto Notre Dame grounds.
Jonah Tran is a senior at Notre Dame studying finance and classics. He prides himself on sarcasm and never surrendering. You can file complaints to Jonah by email at jtran5@nd.edu.
