Here is my essay on why sports teams should not be allowed to use Native American names as their team names.
Should Redskins and other Native American Sports Names Be Allowed? In the Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary the word “redskin” is defined as usu offensive term for an American Indian. A usu offensive term are words that should be used with discretion because they have racist connotations. Another usu offensive term is nigg--. Most people would agree that nigg-- is not an appropriate name for a sports team. If this is true then why are we letting redskin, a word in the same category, be the name of a team cheered on by hundreds of fans. By allowing this to happen, not only are we promoting negative stereotypes against Native Americans and other minorities but also are bringing derogatory terms into our everyday lives and making fun of historical events. Any team that has a Native American name has a stereotypical image for their mascot. They most commonly show a darker or red skinned, half-naked man with long hair, beads, war paint, and feathers. In the article “Native American Mascots: Pride or Prejudice?” the author Moni Basu describes that “the mascots perpetuate stereotypes that are void of context and history. They argue that even if the mascots themselves are not racially insensitive, they portray native people as one dimensional” (Basu 2). Although fans say that the name honors the Native American tribes (Basu 2) using tribe names helps people forget who the Native Americans are. To some people a Seminole is just their team’s rival or a Redskin is the best football team. When you type “redskin” into a search engine the first result are football statistics. The third is a wikipedia article titled “ Redskin (slang)” and you have to go eight more results down to find another search result not just relating to the team. This shows how we view the term “redskin”. To most people a redskin is a football team. This is not only a problem for Native Americans. If you search “celtic” the first mention of the Celts of Scotland is on the second page. If you look up Illini the only mention of a tribe is once on the second page. We can’t be honoring a group if they are pushed into the background behind the sports team. To truly honor the contributions Native Americans have made to our lives we should not exclude them from our society, learn and teach about their culture, and strive to better understand the people whose ancestors helped create our country. Instead, we turn their history into a “funny” caricature that provides an unrealistic image of Native Americans. We see the logos everywhere; on tee shirts, foam fingers, banners, cups, signed helmets, etc. They all scream the same stereotypical image that is being sent to our children. If a child grows up in a house that supports the Redskins the child gains positive memories with the word. They may get confused when the word is used as a slur and they misinterpret it as a compliment. Worst of all, the children don’t understand how racist the word is. How, could a word that means their favorite sports team also be hurtful to their friends. If a team has a tribe’s name then the children learn the team without knowing the tribe. Some sports teams names can have unrecognisable Native American origin to people unfamiliar with the subject. If we can't recognise that the name has meaning then how will we honor it? Some team names like this include Apache, Knicks, Aboriginals, Chinooks, Oorang, Mayaguez, Aztecs, Blackhawks, Utes, Tomahawks, and Indigenous (Wikipedia: List of sports team names and mascots derived from indigenous peoples). Most of these names are lesser known tribes. Some names like Aboriginals has already been changed. According to the article, The Most Offensive Names in Sports: A Definitive Ranking, the most racist sports team names are the Kansas City Chiefs, San Diego State University Aztecs, Washington Redskins, and the Cleveland Indians (Tracy 1). Why would the Cleveland Indians be the most racist? So why do I rank the Indians as the worst? “The name of the Washington team is by no means a term of honor, or even a neutral descriptor; it's a slur. But somebody could at least come to it without knowing its history and not understand how problematic it is. By contrast, there is nothing in the world of sports quite like Chief Wahoo, who at the first glance is revealed to be a demeaning and racist caricature” (Tracy 1). One of the reasons people prefer Indian names for a sports team is because of the wild, violent spirit associated with them. This idea encourages a false statement that all Native Americans are bloodthirsty savages. For a team these names might represent persistence. Like most team names they could also be trying to intimidate the other team. In the article “Tribe Supports Native American Mascots” Frank Cloutier, the Saginaw Chippewa social director, discusses where his tribe draws the line between offensive and allowed. He concludes that “If they are using a menacing-looking Indian and trying to intimidate the other team because they might get scalped, that’s inappropriate”. Unfortunately, this seems the most apparent reason for the use of Native American name. The old Redskin fight song: Hail to the Redskins! Hail Victory! Braves on the Warpath! Fight for old Dixie! Run or pass and score -- we want a lot more! Scalp 'em, swamp 'em -- We will take 'em big score Read 'em, weep 'em, touchdown - we want heap more Fight on, Fight on -- 'Till you have won Sons of Wash-ing-ton. Rah!, Rah!, Rah! This demonstrates what purpose Washington is using the name Redskins for. The line scalp’em shows the inappropriate use of the name and Native American culture. They have since changed the song in an attempt to keep their name. By allowing sports teams to use names associated with Native Americans we perpetuate stereotypes, encourage the use of offensive language, and make fun of the Native American “fighting spirit”. In our society we try to avoid words or actions we consider racist. When we name a team an offensive words are we honoring or discriminating. Without learning about the culture behind the name and by using a stereotypical mascot the discrimination trumps any honorific image. It is not just Native Americans, Knicks, Aztecs, Celts, Vikings, Dutchman, Spartans, Scots, Quackers, Samurai, Athenians, and Britons all refer to other ethnic groups. To solve the problem we must replace team names that mention a culture of people. If we work together we can stop this stain on the American belief that “all men are created equal”.
Works Cited "List of Ethnic Sports Team and Mascot Names." Wikipedia. N.p., 8 Nov. 2016. Web. 1 Dec. 2016. Tracy, Marc. "The Most Offensive Team Names in Sports: A Definitive Ranking." New Republic. N.p., 9 Oct. 2013. Web. 1 Dec. 2016. "Fight Song." Haruth. N.p., 26 Aug. 2012. Web. 1 Dec. 2016. Basu, Moni. "Native American Mascots: Pride or Prejudice." (2013): 1-4. Web. 1 Dec. 2016.