The Jacksonville Jaguars are in a world of trouble after their mascot displayed a sign with a terrible Ebola joke, during their game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. During the Oct. 5th game, the Jaguars’ mascot Jaxson de Ville held up a handwritten sign in the fourth quarter that read, “Towels carry Ebola,” referring to the Steelers’ terrible towels. Immediately viewers and NFL fans lit up social media on Sunday night calling for the mascot to be fired.
Whoever came up with the Ebola Towel joke in #Jacksonville should be fired. On the spot.
— Ronnie K (@RonnieKRadio) October 5, 2014
In bad taste, stay classy Jacksonville RT@sbnation: Jaguars mascot doesn’t get how ebola, jokes work http://t.co/tUY5Z6VXWN
— Dan Levey (@iamdanlevey) October 5, 2014
The Ebola epidemic is definitely not something to laugh about or make light of..big mistake by the Jaguars
— T.K. Smith (@TK_Smith3) October 6, 2014
Jaguars president Mark Lamping identified Curtis Dvorak as the man in the team mascot costume for the past 20 seasons, and said that the team had no knowledge of the joke beforehand.
“Improvisation and humor have both been key elements to the character of Jaxson de Ville, especially when he performs at home games,” Lamping said according to ESPN. “On Sunday, the person who has played Jaxson de Ville over the past 20 seasons made an extremely poor decision in that regard.”
The team extended their sincerest apologies to anyone who was offended. In the meantime, Lamping is taking the matter seriously and is handling it internally.
Ebola is a viral disease spread through contact with bodily fluids and has quickly affected African nations Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. More than 3,400 people have died from the current Ebola outbreak, according to the World Health Organization.
Thomas Eric Duncan, 42, is the first patient in the United States diagnosed with Ebola. Duncan, who is currently in critical condition, is being treated at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital. Spokespeople for the hospital stated that he is currently stable and receiving the experimental drug brincidofovir, which has only been tested in animals. There is currently no vaccine or proven treatment for Ebola. Ninety percent of those diagnosed with the disease die. Thomas Frieden, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Duncan is “fighting for his life.”