Skansi1

Sam Skansi
Amy Rossi
English 2000
9 December 2015
Replace for Race?
The controversy over sports mascots and names that some may
perceive as offensive is not new. Dating all the way back to 1968, the
National Congress of American Indians began a campaign against these
stereotypical themes. Since this legislation, some action has been taken but
the First Nation, or an indigenous American Indian community officially
recognized as an administrative unit by the federal government without
official status, want reform to come much quicker. For the past few decades,
these First Nation people have been fighting for this cause with still no
complete success. Although this subject may seem trivial on the surface,
these stereotypes can inflict damage to First Nations people and human
dignity, and even though at times this issue can be looked at as political
correctness gone awry, it, by no means, makes it the wrong thing to do.
It didnt take long for the wildfire, that is this issue, to spread across
the country. In just one year after the National Congress of American Indians
formed their campaign a team had changed their Indian themed mascot.
Dartmouth College, a school originally founded for the education of American
Indians, changed their name from the Indians to the Big Green in a response
to Native American undergraduate who found the war-paint-and-feathers

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imagery offensive and also a Dartmouth board of trustees that thought the
symbolism was inconsistent with the present institutional and academic
objectives of the college (Kirszner 645). This was the first case of this
problem occurring but maybe, from the start it points out that these names
and themes are offensive. One of the most recent and highlighted instances
of this issue was with the University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux, where
the school was forced to change their name based upon a vote taken by the
residents of North Dakota, whose state is named after the Dakota Indian
tribe, ironically. A new name for the school has yet to be decided, but this
issue is no longer limited to just college sports however, and many
professional teams are also under scrutiny for their use of racially insensitive
mascots and team names. For example: The Chicago Blackhawks, Cleveland
Indians, Atlanta Braves, and probably the most known, the Washington
Redskins have all been under fire for their use of Indian related names (Shaw
N.p.). The Washington Redskins have not been forced to change their name,
but they did lose their trademark for their name and image (Salem N.p.). A
federal judge ruled to uphold this decision which would allow for the
Washington Redskins organization to use the name and moniker, but would
also allow for anyone else to use it without repercussion. This punishment
seems peculiar to me as I do not understand why a federal judge feels the
need to take away the trademark for such a name, but doesnt feel the need
to take the name away from them. Perhaps this is because if one name or
mascot is changed by the government a snowball effect may occur where all

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teams in the limelight must change their names to assimilate with the
culture of today. This does not necessarily solve the problem, but it does
throw a punch at the Washington Redskins financial and public relation
branches which could lead to a forthcoming name change (N.p.). With so
many fans that are unoffended by these names it is hard to make an
argument that these names should be changed, however the effects of these
names and mascots do have lasting effects on the culture of Native
Americans.
Since some of these mascots and team names have been around for
over a hundred years one of the biggest problems is that people dont
understand what the issue actually is. In 2005, the NCAA, National Collegiate
Athletic Association, announced a ban on hosting post-season games for 18
colleges that were using Indians names and mascots. Mark Hyman, a writer
for the American Spectator, wrote, The NCAA made an assumption, jumped
to a conclusion and adopted the politically correct viewpoint that using
Indian heritage in such a manner was "hostile and abusive." The problem, it
appears, is that no one bothered to check with the assumed aggrieved
parties to determine if they were truly offended (Mandell 648). The
confusion of this topic obviously continues to cloud the line to cross and the
answer is still unclear. John Two-Hawks, an Oglala Lakota activist, believes
that the answer to this question to understanding the issue is both simple
and complex. He says, The simple answer is that they are disrespectful and
hurtful to First Nations people. Some of the names and antics seen at games

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are nothing less than racist (Two-Hawks N.p.). Two-Hawks is not the only
person with this belief that these terms are racist, as he is actually backed by
the United States government. In 2014, the government went on record
backing the dictionary definition of the word redskin as a racial slur, which
actually lead to the stripping of the Redskins patent from the U.S. Patent
Office (Change the Mascot N.p.). Dennis Banks, a member of the Anishinabes
tribe and a leader in the American Indian Movement, is also a strong backer
of the reform of racial insensitivity team names and mascots. He asks a bold,
but very interesting question, he asks The Cleveland Indians or the Atlanta
Braves why not change their name to the Niggers? I wonder how many
black would play for them (or whites for that matter) (Banks 5). The
complexity comes into play with the fact that changing these names is no
easy task and since these names have been around for so long it is hard to
decide whose traditions to favor. Since this issue has been around since, at
least, the 1960s, I believe an issue, here, lies with the hypocrisy. Although
teams have switched their beliefs and names in the past, to make a universal
rule to change names and mascots would be admitting that they were
offensive or wrong in the first place. The truth of the matter is that these
words are offensive to this group of people, and if words such as the N-word
is forbidden from speech, terms like redskins should not only be taken out
of speech but also off of our nationally known teams and beloved mascots.
Is this just an example of political correctness running amok though? I
used to think so. I used to think that it was a senseless idea to go through all

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the pain and effort of changing a teams name just because a smaller group
of people were offended, but I never took into consideration putting myself
into their shoes for a moment. Here lies the disconnect, as I have never been
offended by this issue I have never cared about how Native American groups
originally felt, but I know that if something offended me the way this issue
offends some Native American groups, I would want action taken
immediately. Perhaps the way things have been ran in the recent past have
lead to a belief of hypersensitive political correctness, but I believe John TwoHawks puts this into perspective well. He asks, What, for crying out loud, is
so 'political' about being correct? In my opinion, whining about 'political
correctness' is just code for complaining about having to do the right thing
and show a little respect and decency (Two-Hawks N.p.). Perhaps here, in
this case, we dont have an issue with political correctness as much as we
have a problem with the people behind the political correctness. Mark
Hyman, in his article regarding this topic, wrote, The most absurd aspect of
this politically correct ruckus is that non-native Americans are lecturing
Native Americans on what should offend them (Mandell 649). To me, with
the right precautions taken into account, it doesnt seem like to big of a deal
to begin assimilating team names and mascots into universally accepted
themes and motifs Hyman suggest, Perhaps it is time for the PC police to
take a long, deep breath and relax before contemplating any further action
(650).

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The use of racially insensitive team names and mascots, although not
a new occurrence, is a practice that insults and trivializes Native American
people. Even though change has been seen through out history, more still
needs to be done for the First Nation people to receive the respect they
deserve. Despite the flak Native Americans get for their politically correct
beliefs I believe the fact of the matter is that changing these things, even
though it could make some people upset, would make do more good than
bad in this society. The people who fight against this cause should take a
step back and put themselves in the First Nation peoples shoes. The time to
end using racially insensitive names and mascots is now.

Work Cited
Banks, Dennis J. "Tribal Names And Mascots In Sports." Journal Of Sport &
Social Issues 17.1 (1993): 5-8. SocINDEX with Full Text. Web. 15 Nov.
2015.

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"Change The Mascot - Launched By The Oneida Indian Nation."
ChangeTheMascot.org. Change the Mascot Campaign, n.d. Web. 14
Nov. 2015.
Kirszner, Laurie G., and Stephen R. Mandell. "Chapter 19." Practical
Argument: A Text and Anthology. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2011.
645-52. Print.
Salem, Dan. "Washington Redskins: Will the NFL Now Force a Name Change?"
NFL Spin Zone. Sports Illustrated, 12 July 2015. Web. 20 Nov. 2015.
Shaw, Alexis. "'Change the Mascot' Campaign Hits Washington Redskins."
ABC News. ABC News Network, 8 Sept. 2013. Web. 22 Nov. 2015.
Two-Hawks, John. "How 'Indian' Mascots Oppress - Issues- Native Circle."
www.nativecircle.com/mascots.htm, n.d. Web. 21 Nov. 2015.

English 2000

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Walking into my first day of class, I had no idea what to expect. As I
slowly got used to, and more comfortable with, you and my classmates I
began to really get a kick out of partaking in class. The thing I think I will use
the most that I developed in your class is the ability to read deeper into
something than what is on the surface. I really began to read into the articles
and stories with deductive strategies to try and uncover all the meanings
and arguments the author put into his work. From now on, I think that I will
have a better understanding of things that I read and hopefully be able to
understand all sides of arguments.

P.S. - I a greatly appreciate everything you did for us in class and all
the work you put into this class in and outside the classroom. I really did
have a great time taking your class and get to know you. Also, good luck on
the rest of your book!