Native Americans are not mascots, they are not savages, they are a group of indigenous peoples who deserve to have their interests as equally protected and represented, just as all Americans should. People nowadays have firm resistant behaviors to being PC, politically correct, opting in favor of a more “honest approach”. It is the strategy of the opposing counsel, as a means to dismiss the severity of the slur by stating that it is not a prominent issue and that it causes no harm or disparagement to the Native American community. There has been a gross, and quite frankly, dishonest twisting of the facts by both the Redskins team and the opposing council. The Washington mascot is uniquely destructive because it not only perpetuates the stereotypical …show more content…
and outdated caricature portrayed by many Native American mascots, but also promotes and justifies the use of a dictionary-defined racial slur, thus increasing risk for discriminatory experiences against Native Americans. The use of a word denoting race for a brand name is offensive regardless of the goods it is applied to because the commercial appropriation of race in this way suggests a certain power relation between the appropriator and the appropriate( Farley).
Given the history and context of how the team has represented the name, paired by the fact that they do not even have any Native American players displays the demeaning nature of the team's name and furtherly disproves their attempt at saying that they are re-appropriating the name to honor Native Americans. Brands and trade symbols are not just pictures. They implicate the very force of identity, which can form and recode itself according to the dynamic pull of public culture. But there are certain marks that remain disparaging by the communities that are targeted by them, and that is precisely why we need the force of law to limit its protection of them( Katyal). The Washington Redskins implicates a painful slur that has never been claimed or associated as symbol of pride by Native Americans and is in clear defiance of the Lanham …show more content…
Act. In section 2(a) of the Lanham Act, Congress has explicitly forbidden registration for certain categories of marks including those that "[c]onsist[] of or comprise [] immoral ... or scandalous matter; or matter which may disparage ... persons, living or dead, institutions, beliefs (Cornell). The swastika did not originate as a symbol of white supremacy and antisemitism, but it has that history and context surrounding it now.
Just as you can not and should not trade mark a swastika, the same principle applies to the Redskins name, it really does not matter if the creator of the team or the word had the intent to disparage. It actively is degrading and has a history of being disparaging to the Native American population. Kevin Gover, director of the Institution's National Museum of the American Indians, established that as a member of the Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma regarding the word redskin that, “I'm really not that interested in where the word comes from," Gover said. "I know how it was used. And it's been used in a disparaging way for at least a couple of centuries. Up to and including the time I was growing up in Oklahoma”(Holmes). Friedman: A series of studies show that if Native Americans are shown images of stereotypical Native American mascots ... self-esteem goes down, belief in community goes down, belief in achievement goes down, and mood goes down. And these effects are primarily among Native American
adolescents. Pipestem: Our children are very involved in the traditional and ceremonial life of our tribes. One day at the dinner table, my oldest son, Truman, said kids at school are wearing these Washington football jerseys and other wear. ... It was before a game, and my second son said, "Are they making fun of us, Dad Protecting first amendment is a noble cause, but the defense is making a mockery out of it, the elastic clause protects the importance of this law and the integrity of the constitution and by allowing the government to approve a name such as the redskins opens a door to allow systematic government approved racism. Just like the brands that it protects, trademark law is sufficiently flexible – and expansive enough – to tell the difference between a brand that is disparaging and a brand that is not.
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,
Lliu, K., and H. Zhang. "Self- and Counter-Representations of Native Americans: Stereotypical Images of and New Images by Native Americans in Popular Media." Ebscohost. University of Arkansas, n.d. Web. 19 Apr. 2014
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.
Perpetuation of Native American Stereotypes in Children's Literature Caution should be used when selecting books including Native Americans, due to the lasting images that books and pictures provide to children. This paper will examine the portrayal of Native Americans in children's literature. I will discuss specific stereotypes that are present and should be avoided, as well as positive examples. I will also highlight evaluative criteria that will be useful in selecting appropriate materials for children and provide examples of good and bad books. Children will read many books as they grow up.
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...
...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 Sports Illustrated article leaves much out. Price makes light of critiques of racially biased language by labeling these critiques a matter of “political correctness” but fails to provide the reasons behind such critiques. Also, Price does not discuss the life of a single Native American who feels diminished by the Native American mascot in her/his community.
The idea of having a Native American as a mascot seems respectful to the tribe and a way to honor the people who arrived to this country first. Many people find it racist and derogatory to call teams by these names, while
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
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
Team mascots that depict a certain type of group is wrong and should be changed. It is degrading and hurtful to far too many people to keep them from staying the same. Native Americans or any other race or ethnicity should not be stereotyped in a way that degrades them in any way. All teams that have mascots that are named after a certain race or ethnicity should be changed.
The stereotype of Native Americans has been concocted by long history. As any stereotype constructed by physical appearance, the early Europeans settlers were no different and utilized this method. Strangers to the New World, they realized the land was not uninhabited. The Native Americans were a strange people that didn't dress like them, didn't speak like them, and didn't believe like them. So they scribed what they observed. They observed a primitive people with an unorthodox religion and way of life. These observations made the transatlantic waves. Not knowingly, the early settlers had transmitted the earliest cases of stereotyped Native Americans to the masses. This perpetuated t...
Many races are unjustly victimized, but Native American cultures are more misunderstood and degraded than any other race. College and high school mascots sometimes depict images of Native Americans and have names loosely based on Native American descent, but these are often not based on actual Native American history, so instead of honoring Native Americans, they are being ridiculed. According to the article Warriors Survive Attack, by Cathy Murillo (2009) some “members of the Carpentaria community defended Native American mascot icons as honoring Chumash tradition and the spirit of American Indian Warriors in U.S. history and others claimed that the images were racist stereotypes” (Murillo, 2009). If people do not attempt to understand and respect Native American culture, then Native American stereotypes will become irreparable, discrimination will remain unresolved, and ethnocentrism will not be reprimanded.
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, ...