The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines mascot as, “a person, animal, or object used as a symbol to represent a group (such as a sports team) and to bring good luck.” Hopeful sports teams around the United States rely on their mascots to bring in positive energy as motivation to help win the game. The mascot often serves as the face of a team, and acts to define the team’s character to their opponents. The mascots represent the community that the team belongs to, and that is a big role. When a mascot is offensive or isolates a particular group of people, the mascot can also bring negative attention to the team. The negative publicity will often result in a mascot change. Many of the most controversial mascots in history have been caricatures of indigenous peoples. One of the most famous is “the Chicago Redskins,” with a picture of a Native American on its flag. There has been an on-going campaign to change the name by fans of the NFL, which have been dismissed by the owner, Dan Snyder, and the NFL alike. Despite the mascot being portrayed in a positive light, it is still representing a stereotype and encouraging racism. Chicago sports teams seem to admire the fighting spirit of the Native Americans, hockey fans cheer on “the Chicago Blackhawks.” Again the mascot is an Indian, fully dressed with feathers and face paint. While many people are offended by the use of a particular race of people being used as a mascot, The Executive Vice President of the Blackhawks tribe doesn’t seem to mind, calling the team’s logo “respectful and proud.” The Florida State University “Seminoles” managed to escape a name change due to outrage over a new rule by the NCAA, banning the use of American Indians as mascots. The Florida Seminole Tribe endor... ... middle of paper ... ...face, they suggest that being a trinket used to bring good fortune to the team is all they are worth as a race. The universities help to oppress them even more by ignoring their culture and making them the “Redskins that bring the team luck.” Most importantly, they isolate these people by their race, essentially saying the “redskins” are not like the other races. A sports team capitalizes on a mascots positive energy to bring them luck before a game. Sometimes, a school’s ignorance can encourage racism and stereotyping to bring negativity to the race that they are oppressing. While their heart is in the right place, the mascots should be changed. American Indians are not savage warriors like the mascots suggest, they should be known for their rich history and amazing culture. If there is equality among all of the races, maybe everyone would have positive energy.
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
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.
Cultural stereotypes have always existed and while they may have been acceptable to society in the past, that does not compel us to accept them in today’s society. One such stereotype which is used is that of Native American names and imagery for sports teams and in particular The Washington Redskins of the National Football league. While for many people, this is an argument that has just recently arisen, in actuality, the debate over the use of native names and images has been an ongoing issue for over 50 years. The subject of the Washington Redskins name has been debated across politics, media, academia, religious backgrounds and in the public square for many years.
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."
The Native American mascots used range from names like the Indians, Chiefs, and Braves, which are some of the more generic ones, to Seminoles, Fighting Illini, and Chippewas to name some of the tribal based names. The idea of having a Native American as a mascot seems respectful to the tribe and a way to honor the people who first arrived in this country. Many people find it racist and derogatory to call teams by these names, while it actually honors their culture and shows respect. They find it racist or offensive to the tribe itself, even if they have no connection with the tribe at all.
The author Justin Angle says how in a study the mascots and names were shown to people unfamiliar with Native American culture and the sport teams, in the end of the study most of the participants viewed Native American’s as “war like”, which can carry negative consequences in the real world affecting the views of some future employers, creating a view that though Native American’s can be seen as strong and bold they can also have been perceived as violent and irrational. The uses of Redskins also create the belief that it is culturally appropriate for the constant use of Native American culture this has led to thousands of schools and sports teams to have questionable mascots and names. Such as the Savages from Salmon High school and the baseball team the “Indians” whose mascot was a hooked nose red skinned Indian with bucked teeth. Comparing this to the now frowned upon depiction of African American as black red lipped stereotyped popular in the 1920s advertisements does it not show similarities in a cultures becoming a caricature. While one is view as racist the other is view and honorable due to it representing one of the greatest passtimes in America,
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
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?
In the article “Indian Mascots- You’re out,” Jack Shakely discusses how colleges, and professional sports team portray Native Americans as their mascots. Shakely argues that when most schools or teams are coming up with mascots or team names that they may be only doing it for the money that can be brought into the franchise of the professional team or to the college team. Shakely also says that when it comes to removing the mascots that are offend people that it may be hard and costly, but it is the right thing to do.
A large part of a sports team is the mascot. They are known for getting the crowds and even the teams hyped up before any game. They are going around and talking or dancing to people before, in-between, and after the games. The mascots for any sport can range in what they are, but a portion those that are involved, are of the Native American Culture. There are over 30 teams that have a mascot or team name that reference or mimic some form of Native American culture (Valadez). To some this has become very offensive and is no longer something to be tolerated. Native American author Jack Shakely makes the argument in his article Indian Mascots – You’re Out, that the time has come to an end for Native American Culture to be used as propaganda.
In her article, Hoffman explained how there was never a time that her and her community thought of their “Reddy Redskin” and a derogatory slur. In Hoffmann’s community, Chowchilla, the town derived from the tribe of the Chaushila Yokut Indian tribe, meaning bravery. She owes a large part of who she is to her heritage of being a Chowchilla Redskin. Local school district Superintendent explains “We don’t call those offended by the term Redskins, Redskins. We call ourselves Redskins. We use the term as a sense of pride, respect and honor. We don’t use it in a derogatory way (Hoffmann).” In small communities, like Chowchilla, with generations of Redskin alumni, the Redskin name change is widely opposed and makes it an even more sentimental topic. The pride these High Schools have for their Redskin mascot isn’t “Warpaint and racial slurs” it’s pride and honor for the Native American tribes that once walked and ruled the
Expert: Sport mascots must be proficient all through the ensemble. They must have the capacity to work freely and as a major aspect of a group. They ought to be thoughtful, amenable, versatile, ready to think rapidly, have solid interpersonal aptitudes, be capable, and be arranged to skillfully manage any circumstance. Sport mascots ought to likewise have the capacity to interface absolutely with kids and know how to manage injurious and frightful kids.
Sports teams that have Indian names or mascots are offensive to Native culture and their
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, ...