For Native American Names as Mascots

           Braves, Chiefs, Redskins, Seminoles, Indians, are all names of sports teams that honor Native Americans. Having a name based on the image of Native Americans represents courage, camaraderie, and power. A mascot is used to capture a vision of strength that will lead the team to a victory, which is why The Butterfly’s is not a name of a sports team. Some of the most strengthening mascots for sports teams relate to Native American based names. The Native American people also to have to come into account, do they really think the mascots are discriminating against them? The results from a poll run by Sports Illustrated reveals the answer to this. If these mascots were to change money will be lost, traditions will be broken, and the Native Americans will be forgotten.

            If this change were too occur, many lower class public elementary and high schools will be affected. Most public school systems are limited the amount of funds they receive each year. If a law prohibits the use of Native American based names then the school will be forced to use its money on the changing mascot instead of the children’s education. Keep into account that changing a mascot will involve spending fund money on all new team uniforms, re-painting gym walls and floors, and replacing all old logos with the new ones. After all necessary changes are made millions of dollars that could have been spent on the education of children is wasted. The major team leagues named after Native American terms will also lose out on money. They will have to spend on new uniforms, merchandise, re-painting stadium logos, and getting rid of all the old and replacing it with the new. Even though the major leagues make a large amount of money on profits it will still take them a while to bounce back from the deficit. There is also the variable as to whether the fans of the team will still route for them.

            The United States is a big advocate of sports. Many generations of families have always loved the same team. When the team name is changed memories will be forgotten. Also, may it be for elementary, high school, college, or the majors, if this change takes place all of the retired players won’t be able to share a common image with the other more newer players. The mascot of the team usually represents a town and a community. The people of this town find that they have something common to identify themselves with, and in taking the mascot away they will be forced to rebuild this togetherness.

            Many team names that have a Native American name are a representation of local tribes and native people. The name is meant to honor the strength and courage that the Native Americans had and still have. Most of the time the names don’t even effect the Native Americans, and usually they admire the honor. “At Eastern Michigan University (EMU)…the sports teams used to be called the Hurons, after the Huron Indians of that region. In the early 1990’s, the regents of the school voted to switch the name to the Eagles” (Native). This decision had no involvement with the Huron tribe, and when they heard of the switch they were greatly disappointed. Florida State University (FSU) is also named after a local tribe. The Seminole tribe actually helped in the design of the mascot, Chief Osceole, “a real Seminole chief who fought federal soldiers during the 1830’s” (Native). The Major league Baseball team, The Cleveland Indians was named in honor of the first Native American baseball player. In the example at EMU the change of mascots was due to what the town though, not to what the Native American tribe thought. If it were up to them they would have left the name as it was. The mascot name of the Huron not only represented the town, but it represented the tribe. FSU and The Cleveland Braves should not change their mascots because than they would be dishonoring memorable people in history.

            And what does the Native American population think? In a poll done by Sports Illustrated they found that “many of the Native Americans were unconcerned about the issue” (Price and Woo). When asked if they thought that the mascots and names of teams was contributing to discrimination against the Native Americans, 23% living on reservations said it contributed, 17% living off reservations agreed, and when asked the same thing to random families only 12% though that the names contributed to the discrimination. Therefore, a majority of the Native people do not see a change in how people view them based on sport team mascots and names. With these results it is safe to say that schools should save their money for education, and legacies should live on. No major harm is done if the Indian names stay the same, so there is no point in changing it.

Against Native American Names as Mascots

            “The Fightin’ Whities Win in the World Series.” This is not a real newspaper headline, and Fightin’ Whities is not a real sports team name. This name Fightin’ Whities was only used as a vice to strengthen a protest students at the University of Northern Colorado had over a local high schools sports team, named the Fightin’ Reds. If Fightin’ Whities would never be an MLB sport team name because it is too offensive to many people, then Fightin’ Reds should be no different, but there is a school with that team mascot. The Native American people as a whole have lost so much in their history, and the only way that Americans believe they are able to repay them is by using their name as sport team mascots. Using a Native American people as sport team names is offensive, racist, and an inappropriate depiction of the first settlers. Through education and the change of Native American mascots, the image and well-being of the native people can be restored.

Reds has a dual meaning. It could refer to the color of Native Americans skin color, or to the history of Native Americans interaction with the white men. From earlier accounts, ‘red’ was referring to when the “traders and soldiers would bring Indian scalps, red with blood, back from battle in order to collect a bounty” (Native).  Native Americans have faced an oppressive history, and they are constantly reminded of that when the see that their name being used as team mascots, instead of a white name based mascot. One Native American decedent said, “American Indians are a people, not mascots for Amercias fun and games. We are human beings” (Teters). If only a few Native Americans believe that the mascot names should be changed, then we should respect their decision and change the names, no matter the cost. We owe the Native people a lot, and respecting their decisions is one step in leading to equality throughout every race.

Red face, big teeth, black hair, and a feather to top it all off. This is the image seen on the Cleveland Indians logo. Chief Wahoo is a stereotypical image of a Native American, no Indian ever did or does look like the image used for this Major League Baseball team. In the United States government laws and bills are being past in order to create equal living for everyone, yet still we are faced with an image of a red face that is supposed to represent a Native American. This image is far from the truth, and if a child sees this image before ever meeting an actual Native American, they will believe that is what an actual Native American looks like. The University of Illinois’s mascot is Chief Illiniwek. The mascot is “typically a white male, who dresses up in buckskin, and a turkey-feather headdress and dances before the crowd at football and basketball games in order to generate support for the home team.” This depiction of a Native American may be accurate to how they dressed and danced hundreds of years ago, but now it only pokes fun at their lineage. Modern Native Americans do not dance around in feathered headdresses and buckskin, but with incomplete education one may think that is an exact depiction. From the Chief Wahoo to Chief Illiniwek the Native Indians are being racially discriminated because they are shown as different through these two mascots.

A common goal that must be reached through the United States is the right to equality. Through sports false accusations have been made about the Native American people, giving them an image unlike them. In our culture sports play a major role, and the mascot usually correlates to how we view a team. If the Native American mascots were removed from all levels of sports teams, then equality will be much easier to reach. A stereotypical image of a Native American is one with a feather headdress and a red face. In the school curriculum children learn about how the African Americans were seen as different in the early 1900’s because of their history as slaves. The education goes on to describe how African Americans are becoming more integrated into society. The views of African American’s today are much different than how people used to view them, and that is because through education people have been able to accept and apply equality into their way of life. This is not the case with Native Americans. In school children learn about the settlement of the British in America, and how when they came here they found the people in which they called “Indians,” because they looked like the people from India. The education system teaches us how the Native Americans used to live, but how do they live now. They are still around and have modernized with the changing times. Therefore, a Native American mascot for a team is not an accurate depiction, and because of this they should all be changed.

In a society that loves its sports, the love for a team can become too strong that the identity of the team solely resides in the mascot. Even though mascots seem to mean a lot to a team, they are just unneeded symbols that people feel as if they can identify will. In truth,  the players make up the team and  true athleticism and focus will lead a team to victory. Therefore, in order to tend to the feelings of the Native American people and create a better name for them, changing the face of a team will not bring the team down; they will most likely be as good or as bad as they were before. Some many think that in losing the Native American names, that the Native American people will be forgotten. This is not the case, by better educating children we can help them understand what a Native American truly looks like and how they live without the false images set forth by sports teams. One day we will all live in equality, the changing of the mascot’s names is just one step to creating a more perfect world.