ipl-logo

Native American Mascot Research Paper

566 Words3 Pages

Native American Mascot Controversy In a recent study conducted by the sociology professor at California State University, James Fenelon, it was found that out of 786 Native Americans 67% agreed that the term ‘Redskins’, used in sports team’s names, is offensive. Redskin’s and any other Native American term, slang or imagery is offensive and should not be used because these things are sacred to Native American culture, and most of the mascots and the terms used are stereotypical, degrading, and dehumanizing. Many of the mascots used today and in the past related to Native American culture, and though the name may not be meant for the intent to harm or disrespect, they still do cause this. It is their culture and religion and it should not …show more content…

Making a person a mascot is rude and takes away their human aspect, they seem just like something that is watched in amusement not a person who cares about what they are called. Using terms like ‘Indians’ and having the mascot in the typical head dress with feathers is extremely stereotypical when most Native Americans today wear normal clothing and are like anybody else. The president of the NCAI (National Congress of American Indians spoke on this topic. “The invisibility of Native peoples and lack of positive images of Native cultures may not register as a problem for many Americans, but it poses a significant challenge for Native youth who want to maintain a foundation in their culture and language. The Washington team’s brand — a name derived from historical terms for hunting native peoples — is a central component to this challenge" (NCAI President Brian Cladoosby). The end of his quote talks about the term ‘Redskins’ which is the team mascot for the Washington football team. Redskins refers to the bounty for the bloody scalps of Native Americans, which is id obviously very offensive and

Show More
Related

The Pros And Cons Of Mascots

124 Words | 1 Pages

When people talk about mascots being named after Indian cultures they think that the Indians being recognized should feel honored. However, when that team plays their rival the other fans are taught to hate those people causing them to hear hateful and degrading comments throughout their lives. “If it’s the team’s tradition, then it’s a legacy of bigotry.” (Wulf). People don’t show respect for Native Americans they use them to create a profit.

Read More

Indian Mascots You Re Out By Jack Shakely

704 Words | 3 Pages

The author uses a personal anecdote to begin his argument: he “bought the Cleveland cap with the famous Chief Wahoo Logo on it” (520), which betrayed his Creek mother’s faith; as a result, his mother jerked the cap off his head and “threw it in the trash” (520), which left an indelible impression on him. Shakely’s personal experience is efficient to draw a vivid picture about “Indian Mascot” abuse for audiences. Based on his experience, he believes that possessing dignity and respect is the right to everybody, and it doesn’t apply to majority rules. Therefore, Shakely claims that college and professional teams should abandon Native American names and mascots because it is racial

Read More

Sioux Warriors Research Paper

336 Words | 2 Pages

The Sioux warriors were well armed they fought using a variety of weapons ranging from spears to guns. In the past, they used clubs, tomahawks, shields bow and arrows, spears and axes. Once the Europeans arrived in the Great Plains they brought to the Indians guns and horses to get them around and guns to hunt more efficiently. Individual Sioux warriors took part in warfare for a number of reasons. Plains Indians went on raids and went to war for a number of reasons such as to steal horses, to get revenge or to destroy their enemies.

Read More

Why 'Redskins' Is A Bad Word Analysis

1041 Words | 5 Pages

Recently, the use of controversial words has become a heavily debated topic and has gained international attention as seemingly truthful statements to some, cause insult to others. The Times article "Why 'Redskins' Is a Bad Word", by acclaimed linguist and professor John McWhortor, was published around the time the use of the word Redskin was being debated. In the article, McWhortor aims to clarify the condemnation of the word Redskin, by suggesting that the offence does not stem from the literal definition of such words, but instead the negative and often derogatory connotations the words have. McWhorter begins by introducing the recent discussions surrounding the use of the word Redskins, especially the actions taken by Californian schools

Read More

How Do Mascots Affecting Native Americans

516 Words | 3 Pages

"The team and its leaders are so obsessed with clinging to a dictionary-defined racial slur that they are willing to abandon their hometown and local fans in order to continue degrading Native Americans," said Joel Barkin, spokesman for the grassroots campaign. "Now that Bruce Allen has been relieved of day-to-day responsibilities as general manager he must have a lot of free time on his hands to double down on this racist moniker and try to figure out what to do about Native Americans returning donations from the team. Unfortunately, Bruce Allen, team owner Dan Snyder and the Washington team fail to understand that you cannot buy acceptance of continued racism. The Washington Redskins football team through the years has been put under increasing pressure to change its name in order to stop causing offense to Native

Read More

Reel Injun Analysis

1043 Words | 5 Pages

“Redskin” is an extremely derogatory term used to describe the reputed color of a Native American 's skin tone. Along with the simply disrespectful terminology, the phrase has a history of being used alongside bounty for the scalping of Native Americans, so it is without a doubt offensive to many people. Washington 's choice to continue using the word as a name for their popular sports team has been the cause of much controversy. Despite the pleas of millions of people, advocacy groups and even government officials to change the name, the sports team remains unchanged. Even the United States Patent and Trademark Office has refused the renewal of their name, logo and likeness, citing the combination as “disparaging to Native Americans" National public opinion polls have found that 60 to 83 percent of the general public supports the teams ' decision to continue using the name, yet only a small majority of fans think the term is offensive to Native

Read More

Native American Mascots Research Paper

824 Words | 4 Pages

The issue of the Native American mascots used by sports teams such as baseball, football and hockey in the United States were first brought up by Native American Civil Rights Movement in the 1960’s. The movement had protested the use of Native American related references in two teams in particular, the Cleveland Indians and Washington Redskins. The Cleveland Indians had used Chief Wahoo as their sports logo, whereas the Washington’s use of “Redskins” as their team name is still, to this day, controversial due to the nature of the name as a derogatory slang (King, 2010.) It is unclear how or why such names were picked out as sports teams’ names and mascot or logo, but it is seen that European Americans in the 19th century has started the ‘trend’ of doing so.

Read More

Redskins Controversy

534 Words | 3 Pages

They do not view this as honorable, it is seen as their name being worn as a costume. The cultural appropriation that comes along with these mascots lead to the stereotypes being seen as a reality. So many Native Americans are now fighting for this, they have created a twitter campaign to spread awareness to this. The term “redskins” comes off as racist; it is basing them off of their skin tone and color. Many people who argue that the team name should remain are the same ones who say they do not see your “color of skin”.

Read More

The Controversy Over Changing The Name Of The Washington Redskins

524 Words | 3 Pages

Some people assume the Washington Redskins are using the name in a derogatory way, while others view as a way to honor Native Americans, this is considered a disjunction Some Redskins fas, outside of the game during the rally did not want the name do be changed. James Madison University’s newspaper, The Breeze, printed an article September 13, 2017, which stated, “Numerous polls have provided insight into the fact that today’s Native Americans overwhelmingly view the team’s use of the word as being innocent and not in need of removal” (Ford). However, the article then reminds us that during “Andrew Jackson’s administration in the late 1820s and through the majority of the 1830s, the word began to hold a negative, derogatory connotation. ”(Ford). This is a negation because of the negativity it caused.

Read More

Persuasive Essay On African American Mascots

1577 Words | 7 Pages

Fans are so attached to the name and mascot of their favorite teams that they are unwilling to see things from another perspective. “all of the Indians in my city are perfectly fine with the redskins and all other mascot. Cities like dc and Cleveland and atlanta are all huge cities that love their mascot. . . . WASHINGTON REDSKINS FOR LIFE YOU STUPID SQUAW. GO BACK TO THE RESERVATION” (Fenelon, 2017, page 78).

Read More

Native American Culture Research Paper

566 Words | 3 Pages

The question is; should cultural treasures should be returned to their countries of origin? The answer is yes. For example; Native American cultural, spiritual sites like the Black hills and Mato Paha (bear butte) was taken by the europeans that travelled here and took their land also. These cultural landmarks had cultural, and religious association for the area from which were taken from the government and settlers. The sites like: Mato Tipila (Devils tower), Hinhan Kaga (Harney Peak), Mato Paha (Bear Butte), and He Sapa (Black Hills) were all once a sacred site for all native tribes for religious reasons, but the europeans came and took their sacred sites, their land, and their animals, commonly the buffalo.

Read More

Sports Team Names And Mascots Essay

544 Words | 3 Pages

There are many sports team names and mascots whose names reference Native Americans; this has become a public controversy due to the sports team names being interpreted as a racially offensive pursue. Most people do not take into consideration that these teams have an important meaning behind them, and how they contribute to the insightful history of Native Americans themselves. It would be a catastrophe having to lose all the history. Many claims toward this idea of "racism" are due to NFL and college team names such as the Washington Redskins, Kansas City Chiefs, and the Florida State Seminoles are just a few.

Read More

Argumentative Essay On Mascots

1269 Words | 6 Pages

The Indian mascot was originally designed to render tribute to Native Americans, not as a racial symbol. In the past forty years, changing the name backfired, and citizens began taking offense to the name because they felt like the name represented the color of Native American’s skin. Nevertheless, many fans, including Native Americans, do not consider the name or the mascot to be degrading or racial. Fans of the Washington Redskins participated in a poll that reveals, “77 percent reject changing the name” while in another poll “71 percent of NFL fans did not find the Redskins name offensive” (Lingebach 2). Clearly, from the results of the two polls, many fans would be unhappy if the Redskins’ name were to be changed.

Read More

Native American Heritage Research Paper

386 Words | 2 Pages

Through most of my life I grew up not caring much about my heritage and background. I was told by my father that our heritage was primarily German and Native American. Since I was young around that time I did not think much of my heritage. However, as time progressed I grew curious of who I actually was. One day I asked my father the same question I did several years ago.

Read More

Persuasive Essay On Racism In Sports

526 Words | 3 Pages

Some states such as California have already banned schools from using the term redskins and it is the first state to do so. Teams usually won’t change their name unless they are forced to do so and most of the time they are allowed to keep it. This isn’t just in team names, this can also be because of team logos. This is a problem that has grown exponentially around the United States and it’s costing teams lots of money to change their

Read More

More about Native American Mascot Research Paper

Related Topics

Open Document