Pro: Superintendents, sports fans say team names honor tribes Imagine the clashing of football pads. Imagine the roaring fans. Imagine the Redskins fans cheering on their players, but the players are not actually Native American. How upset would this make actual Native Americans? According to Trey Lawrence, the Shiner High School Superintendent, the Shiner Comanches received a letter from a Comanche Indian that talked about how proud he was in the Shiner Comanches and the mascot (Crowe para 14). On the other hand, some people are actually mad about these offensive team names. Such as the Oneida Indian Nation, who hopes to bring the “Change the Mascot” campaign against the Washington Redskins, a NFL team (Crowe para 3). The offensive team …show more content…
Dan Snyder, the owner of the NFL Redskins, says that the so called offensive team names are honoring the tribes. Mr. Snyder said, “It is a symbol of everything we stand for: strength, courage, pride, and respect - the same values we know guide Native Americans,” (Crowe para 4). Dan Snyder was saying that the Redskins are not dissing the Native Americans, they are only honoring them. The people who are saying the name is offensive are just turning the team into an offensive, dirty, horrible and negative team. Furthermore, Melissa Crowe, the author of the article, said, “ Annenberg Public Policy Center polled nearly 1000 self-identified Native Americans from across the country and found that 90 percent of Native Americans did not find the team name ‘Washington Redskins’ to be ‘offensive’, “ (Crowe para 12). This means that the majority of Native Americans think that the names are not offensive. Moreover, Dr.Philip Suarez, a Redskins fan since childhood, also say that the teams are honoring the tribes. Dr. Suarez said, “Our culture has gotten to the point where every single itsy bitsy thing can be turned offensive by somebody,” (Crowe para 8). Philip Suarez means that society and culture have grown weak. Some people in society turn every little term into something
In a generation focused on social justice and the elimination of prejudice from our society, there is still a use of offensive language and terminology in the area of professional sports. In “The Indian Wars” by S. L. Price, Price attempts to make the reader aware of sports teams that use derogatory terms as their team name and their mascot. He does this by highlighting football, and trying to determine whether Native-Americans are offended by team names in sports, or more specifically, the Redskins. Price’s essay is ineffective because although he raises good points, he doesn’t help the reader to form an opinion by adding historical context to the derogatory names used. He also uses inaccurate poll results to make assumptions about the feelings
In the past few years, the controversy over Native American and other racial sport names or mascots have become an uproar. The main sport teams that are being targeted due to controversial mascots are programs having names dealing with Native Americans. Many teams are well known programs such as the Atlanta Braves, Cleveland Indians, and the Washington Redskins. The Redskins are receiving the most heat from racial groups. According to Erik Brady of USA Today “The volatility surrounding such names has amped up in the year since Daniel Snyder, owner of Washington's NFL club, told USA TODAY Sports that he'd never change his team's name: ‘NEVER — you can use caps.’” (3). However, professional teams are not the only teams receiving negative remarks,
Redskins, Seminoles, Tribe, Indians, what do they all have in common? They are all athletic team names under scrutiny by people who deem them as being racist. For years, people have argued over the fact that these names and/or mascots are being used in a negative way. Some have been changed while others are still being argued over. Teams with these mascots should not be forced to change their names because the majority of Native Americans are not even bothered by these sports names.
The debate is divided into two sides. Those opposed to the use of Redskins and all Native American names in sports, and perceive the use of such terms and imagery as racist and derogatory towards Native Americans and those for keeping the name who cite the history of the team, its links to Native American players and coaches who were part of the team when it was create...
Teams in every sport, at every level of competition, have a mascot. It is the mascot that represents the competitive spirit and team identity, motivating players and fans alike. Does the symbol chosen have any impact on whether a team wins or loses? Unlikely. But the choice of a Native American mascot continues to ignite debate and controversy among athletes, fans and alumni, as well as those people who might otherwise be disinterested in sports. Utilizing an Indian mascot is nothing more than a veiled attempt at hate speech.
...ers' evolution from mother and student into a leading voice against the merchandising of Native American sacred symbols -- and shows the lengths to which fans will go to preserve their mascots." In keeping all the Native American Mascots in schools, colleges, and professional sports teams we are showing a lack of respect. The Native Americans have voiced the lack of honor these names are bringing to them. "The fact that history has ignored the incredible pain we have inflicted on Native Americans does not now give us the right to ignore their largely muted call." Americans need to take a step back think about how they would feel if there ritual and or sacred tradition was misused. "We feel that we are being put in a position of sacrificing our dignity and pride and will never be treated as equals in white society as long as the use of Indian symbols continues."
Logos in professional sports like the Cleveland Indians with the added features to the logo has caused a lot of conflict in the past and today. Most schools or franchises that have Native American mascots have tribal people who will stand up for the name and say that you can have them as long as they are not doing anything that people would find offensive to the culture of the Native Americans. A college in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan, Central Michigan University, has a native tribe name for their mascot, the Chippewas. However, the school does not have an offensive logo, doesn’t have anyone dressed up at sporting events, or for activities around campus.
NFL teams are practicing lightly so far this year, training camp is multiple weeks away, and the first preseason game isn't going to be played for months. The new defense has not been completely installed yet and neither has the new offense. We do not know whether the special teams unit will be as effective as it has been the past several seasons because Chip Kelly's practice schedule is no longer in place to provide extra reps and the overall depth chart isn't even being considered at this point because players are currently sporting shorts and t-shirts on the field.
Fighting the use of the word ‘redskins’” by Brian Cladoosby says how “[s]tudies show the use of American Indian-based names, mascots and logos in sports has a negative psychological effect on Native peoples” Cladoosby places a link to Dr. Michael A. Friedman research report which backs his case. In his study Dr. Friedman, a clinical psychologist says how Redskins is “uniquely destructive” because it “perpetuates the stereotypical and outdated caricature” and “promotes and justifies the use of a dictionary-defined racial slur, thus increasing risk for discriminatory”. With the rate of Native American suicide one of the highest in the nation the addition of their culture and history being stereotyped young Natives are facing discrimination and then being told that it’s okay because it’s for a sport. Cladoosby adds how that it creates a challenge to Natives who want to “maintain a foundation in their culture and language” meaning that ignoring a name that was once used when hunting their ancestors means that they are ignoring their culture. The name is not just racist and derogatory but promotes the an old-fashioned and stereotypical view of Native
Recently, the use of controversial words has become a heavily debated topic, as seemingly truthful statements to some, cause insult to others. The Times article "Why 'Redskins' Is a Bad Word", by acclaimed linguist and professor John McWhorter, was published in 2015, around when the use of the word "Redskins" was being debated in Californian public schools through Bill AB-30 (2015). In the article, McWhorter aims to clarify the condemnation of the word "Redskins" (McWhorter,2015, para. 1), by suggesting the offence does not stem from the literal definition of such words, but instead the negative and often derogatory connotations the words have. McWhorter begins by introducing the recent discussions surrounding the use of the word "Redskins" (McWhorter,2015, para. 1). He informs readers of the emotions attached to controversial words in the examples and describes how words continue to evolve as time goes on. Alongside his reputation as a credible person, a quote from a distinguished professor, and anecdotal story, McWhorter provokes an emotional connection with the readers
Putting Indians on a helmet shows how America “owns” them. “Not only do Indians have to deal with the fallout of being ‘conquered’ people...the shame of being men who descended from those unable to protect our women...the shame of being women who descended from those raped and tortured…” but they also have to deal with being reminded of the events that happened in the past. Constantly being reminded of these events is disrespectful and torture. In the past, the Indians were helpless against the pilgrims and were unable to do anything to protect their people. Since the name of the mascot is broadcasted visually, Redskins just reminds them that they were owned and still remain to be. Just like corporate America copyrighting their inventions, in Dan Snyder’s position in his letter to the Washington Redskins fans, he continues to want to “own” the name Redskins. Snyder’s action of keeping the team name shows his power of “sustain[ing] long term success if this franchise.” American Indians are being disrespected in this manner by being seen as a franchise instead of a group of people. Especially since such a big issue like this is just for a sports game, it is demeaning for American Indian’s
Aside from professional sports teams having offensive names, high school and college teams also have offensive names. In Greenly, Colorado at the University of Northern Colorado, their mascot is the Fightin’ Reds. Of course, this name sounds very racists, depicting Native Americans in a very harsh manner. Students on the basketball team renamed their team, The Fightin’ Whites. They were trying to depict the 1950’s style of the average American male. Their slogan for their team is “Every thang’s going to be all white.” By making this new mascot and new slogan, the basketball team was trying to get their city council to talk about the insensitive team mascots that their school, along with thousands of other schools have. In Eaton, Colorado the people who live there are amazed by all the madness that is going on about the school’s mascot. They are perfectly happy with the mascot, and to them it seems like it would be breaking tradition if someone were to change their mascot. Even though there are many people who hate the school’s mascot and vote for it to be changed, there are also some people who love it and do not want to be changed. Some people think it is a honor for a school’s mascot to be named after their culture. But the number of people for the mascots do not even compare to the number of people opposed to the mascots. (Cart, A12)
Sports organizations that have ethnic team names and mascots have been a controversial hot topic for decades. Professional sports franchises like the Cleveland Indians, Atlanta Braves, and Washington Redskins have maintained significant presence and fan base in their respective leagues, but disputes over the perceived racial offensiveness of their names has surrounded them. Some Native American activist groups and political figures think ethnic team names and mascots are disrespectful to their culture and defame the historical legacy of their ancestors. They view the name “Redskins” as a racial slur, and the cartoonish-looking Chief Wahoo mascot for the Cleveland Indians as mockery rather than flattery. Despite the fact that sports franchises know their brand is offending ethnic groups, they have refused to change their team names. Native Americans have experienced psychological distress, lower self-esteem, and a lower sense of achievement because of the offensive and stereotypical names/logos of these teams ("Washington Redskins: Do Offensive Team Names Endanger Public Health?"). This begs the question, should sports teams with potentially offensive names and mascots be required to change their identities in order to be more racially sensitive and politically correct?
The next reason we’ll be looking at are the stereotypical images commonly seen in literature and mascots. Mainstream media such as “Dances with Wolves”, “The Lone Ranger”, and “The Last of The Mohicans” and mascots in professional sports teams like Washington Redskins, Cleveland Indians, Atlanta Braves, and Chicago Blackhawks all include representations of Native Americans that for some, are offensive. With this in mind, ...
Almost instantaneously after the death of Louis XVI in 1793, the Committee of Public Safety took over with Maximilien de Robespierre as head. Those in control believed that anyone blocking their path to liberty should be annihilated, and went to many extents to do so. From 1793 to 1794 France was in the midst of the Reign of Terror, which was characterized by mass executions. Those who supported the revolution thought of the executions as a step on the path to liberty; however, others stood firmly against the revolution as did many outside of France.