Throughout the month of November, things are going to get very turquoise on the court for 5 Nike schools. Today, Nike has announced that Florida State, Nevada, New Mexico, and Oregon State will wear special turquoise Nike N7 uniforms on select dates throughout November.
The uniforms themselves appear to be very similar to what these schools would normally wear, except for the obvious difference that the uniforms are dominantly turquoise. Also, it appears that Florida State & Oregon State both have special striping that looks to be inspired by Native American culture. Nevada will be participating on two nights, so they have two separate jerseys for each game.
Although at first glance it appears that this is just another case of Nike being aggressively progressive with uniform designs and throwing school colors to the wind again in the name of promoting some new material, Nike has made sure to let you know that there’s a bigger reason behind this. November is Native American Heritage Month, and anyone who is aware of Nike’s N7 program knows that the program is dedicated to the cause of bringing awareness to various issues affecting Native Americans and Aboriginals in North America. From Nike’s press release:
“N7’s mission to bring sport and all of its benefits to Native American and Aboriginal communities in the United States and Canada is critical to combat obesity, provide health benefits, and help young people develop discipline, focus and the will to succeed.
The turquoise color is deeply symbolic of friendship and community in Native American culture, reflecting the support of four schools to elevate the power of sport both inside and outside Native communities.”
Each school participating in the program has connections to Native American tribes (such as Florida State & New Mexico), or have made an honest effort to participate in the N7 initiative (which is the case for Oregon State & Nevada). The blindingly-bright turquoise isn’t exactly the most subtle way to bring awareness to the issue, but it will definitely bring fans to ask why they’re wearing it, and it seems that that is the whole point of wearing something for the purpose of awareness. In this case, Nike’s aversion to subtlety should definitely work in the favor of the N7 fund.
But what do you think? Are you a fan of the uniforms and the cause that they’re bringing awareness to? Or do you think that they could have done this in a better way? As always, let us know how you feel in the comments section!
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