First, they came for ‘Chief Wahoo’. Then…
The sad irony in all of this is that the Leftists and ‘Woke’ activists that are pushing the ‘renaming’ agenda are also people who have no use for professional sports, and would ban them if they could…
“…The Cleveland Indians have decided to change their team name, moving away from a moniker that has recently been criticized {by some} as ‘racist’…
“The move follows a decision by the ‘Washington Football Team’ of the N.F.L. in July to stop using a name {‘Redskins’ — See below} long considered a racial slur {by political activists but, ironically, NOT by most American Indians}, and is part of a larger national ‘conversation’ {? More like a lecture} about Race….
“It is not immediately clear what Cleveland’s exact steps will be, beyond dropping the ‘Indians’ name. The transition to a new name involves many logistical considerations, including work with uniform manufacturers and companies that produce other team equipment and stadium signage.
“One of the people said Cleveland planned to keep the ‘Indians’ name and uniforms for the 2021 season while working to shift as early as 2022. Cleveland spent much of the year before the 2019 season {unfortunately} phasing out the logos and imagery of the cartoon mascot “Chief Wahoo”.
“One option that the team is considering, two of the people said, is moving forward without a replacement name — similar to how the ‘Washington Football Team’ proceeded — then coming up with a new name in consultation with the public {Which ‘public’? The team’s fans – and the majority of American Indians – were fine with the name…}.
“The Cleveland baseball franchise has been known as the ‘Indians’ since 1915, but {some} Native American groups and others have for decades opposed the use of ‘Indigenous’ {‘Indians’ are NOT ‘Indigenous’ to North America} names, mascots and imagery for sports teams, insisting they are demeaning and racist. Cleveland’s name and Washington’s old name were considered among the most high-profile examples and were the targets of widespread {media} campaigns for change.
“The Cleveland team did not immediately comment…
“Other professional sports teams, including the Atlanta Braves, the Kansas City Chiefs and the Chicago Blackhawks, have said in recent months that they have no plans to change their names. Many universities and high schools abandoned Native American names and mascots long ago, but efforts to address the names at all levels of sport in the United States have increased in recent months {As part of a coordinated political campaign that did not originate with either fans or American Indians}.
“For Cleveland, the process began when it announced it would retire its longtime mascot, ‘Chief Wahoo’, a cartoonish caricature that was seen {by some} as particularly offensive {?}. Many applauded the decision, but insisted the team name must go, too.
“Then in July, just hours after Washington announced it would change its name (under pressure from key sponsors like ‘FedEx’, ‘Pepsi’ and ‘Nike’), Cleveland said it would conduct a “thorough review” of its nickname. The team has consulted with many Native American groups, both in Ohio and nationally.
“{Small} Native American groups usually appear at Cleveland’s home opener each spring, sometimes in the face of withering verbal abuse from fans {!} as they enter the stadium. In recent years, the team has worked with the protesters and police to help ensure the safety of demonstrators and their right to free and peaceful expression.
“The club has said that the name was originally intended to honor a former player, Louis Sockalexis, who played for the Cleveland Spiders, a major league club, in the 19th century and was a member of the Penobscot ‘Nation’ {More at ‘Background’ link below…}. Some have suggested that Cleveland adopt the name “Spiders” as a replacement.
“Cleveland’s name was long accompanied by the ‘Chief Wahoo’ logo. Phasing the image out included removing the logo from uniforms and from walls and banners in the stadium. A block “C” was adopted in its place.
“Our organization fully recognizes our team name is among the most visible ways in which we connect with the community”,
the team’s July statement said.”
–‘Cleveland’s Baseball Team Will Drop Its Indians Team Name’,
David Waldstein and Michael S. Schmidt, New York Times, Dec. 13, 2020
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/13/sports/baseball/cleveland-indians-baseball-name-change.html
COMMENT:
“Why bury the reason why Cleveland chose their name? Louis Sockalexis broke the color barrier for Native Americans in MLB. That’s a big deal. Much more so than a quick sentence at the end of the story.”
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“The Native activists do not speak for all natives. I live directly adjacent to the Navajo Nation and the team nickname for the biggest high school on the rez is “Redskins” and they have no plans to change. Polls have also shown that they’re not nearly as offended by team nicknames as ‘white’ people think they should be. Not at all unusual to see Indians, Redskins, Chiefs and Braves hats and t-shirts, including ‘Chief Wahoo’. What I’ve learned living here for well over a decade is that Natives make their own decisions and have limited patience with outsiders trying to tell them what’s good for them and their children. After all, they’ve been doing it for thousands of years. Mind your own business.”
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“I’m very disappointed. The team changed their name from the Naps to the Indians to honor Louis Sockalexis, a native American who for a brief time in 1897 looked like the greatest base ball (it was spelled with two words at the time) player of all time but then fell upon hard times. Louis Sockalexis endured a lot of horrible bigotry during his brief baseball career. To erase the Indians name is to erase the memory of the first great native American baseball star… To erase his memory is pathetic.”
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“More virtue-signaling nonsense. I am of Scandinavian descent. Should I be offended because the Minnesota Vikings and its logo are promoting the stereotype of Vikings as male, violent, robbing, raping, marauders? Should people of Irish descent be offended because the “Fighting Irish” of Notre Dame promote the stereotype of the Irish as brawlers after they had a few drinks.
“Lastly, I grew up near two Indian reservations in the upper Midwest. We played two high school sports teams from these reservations and their names were the “Braves” and the “Warriors“. One of the team’s mascots was a student in full war paint, lance in hand, on horseback. These teams honored their heritage and culture through the names of their spots teams and mascots. It’s too bad political correctness and virtue signalling have reached the point that non-Indians cannot do the same.”
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“I really do not see the offense in the name ‘Indians’.
Most of my relatives and friends who are Native Americans use it.”
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“The difficulty here is that it makes ‘progressives’ think that they’ve actually done something. But name changes won’t create a single job for a young Suquamish, or keep even one young Indian mother off the drugs. It won’t get any young tribal students into college. It just makes ‘progressives’ feel better about themselves.”
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“I don’t want to be insensitive, but this seems like another case of political correctness run amuck. How is using this name offensive?
I think the team names portray leadership and praise. Teams choose names admired for fierceness strength and accomplishment: The Senators, The Astros, The Giants, The Yankees, The Steelers, The Tigers, The Lions, The Eagles, The Suns, The Angels.
Much ado about nothing. Stop being offended about everything – and Stop the political correctness!!!!”
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“This is becoming an absurdity contest between sports organizations and corporate entities. What’s next, changing the Yankees name in case any southerners are offended? I foresee a future where the names will be “Football Team from Chicago” and “Baseball Team from Houston“. In all the store aisles, packages will all be plain white with simple texts saying things like “Carbonated Cola Drink” and “Rice Product“. That way, all of the “perpetually offended” can relax about that stuff and concentrate on something else about which to complain.”
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“Very few American Indians are offended by the Cleveland Indians. Interestingly enough, the question of why the word is offensive is never answered.”
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“I am of Scandinavian heritage. I am starting an effort to force the Minnesota Vikings to stop calling themselves Vikings. The use of the Viking name by a professional football team participating in a violent sport perpetuates the image of Vikings as violent, raping, robbing, uncivilized marauders and thereby harms all people of Scandinavian decent. The Viking logo of a fierce male warrior with flowing blonde locks unduly stereotypes Scandinavians by ignoring people of Scandinavian decent who are not fierce or blonde and marginalizes Scandinavian women. It is time for Scandinavians across the United States to unite to correct this slur on our ethnicity and historic culture.”
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“I would guess the real reason for this change has nothing to do with any moral imperative but rather due to the fear of being cancelled by uptight social justice warriors.”
From Washington:
“First, the city of Washington took down a tribute to George Preston Marshall, the founder of its N.F.L. team, that was in front of the team’s old home, Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium. Then the team removed references to Marshall, who named his team the “Redskins” — which he considered a nod to bravery — from inside its stadium and at its training facility.
“On Monday, under pressure from corporate sponsors, the team announced its most dramatic step, that it would drop its logo and “Redskins” from its name, an all-but-forced turnaround by team owner Daniel Snyder, who for decades said he would never change the name…
“Today, we are announcing we will be retiring the Redskins name and logo upon completion of this review,”
the team said in a statement…
“Monday’s decision came just 10 days after the franchise said it would review the 87-year-old team name under significant pressure from major corporate partners including ‘FedEx’, which had threatened to end its naming rights sponsorship of the team’s stadium…
“…more than 2,200 high schools still use Native American imagery in their names or mascots, according to a database of mascot names…”
–‘Washington N.F.L. Team to Drop Name’,
Ken Belson and Kevin Draper, New York Times, July 13, 2020
Updated Sept. 10, 2020
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/13/sports/football/washington-redskins-new-name.html
For background on ‘Indians’ name:
‘CBC Race-Baiting Yet Again’ {October 18, 2016}:
“As most Canadian sports fans are aware, the Toronto Blue Jays are playing the Cleveland Indians in the American League championship. And, of course, nothing can happen in Canada any more without a ‘contribution’ from the Aboriginal Industry – this one incited by Canada’s government-funded broadcaster, the CBC.”
https://insidesportssite.wordpress.com/2016/10/18/cbc-race-baiting-yet-again/
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