Must The Cleveland Indians Get A New Mascot?

Cleveland’s team owner, Yenyo, has announced that the franchise will continue using the “Indians” name and branding until it decides on a new mascot. The decision to remove “Indians” from the team name is being hailed as historic, but Native American advocacy groups argue that Indian sports mascots not only mock Native culture but also erase it. Inventions like Cleveland’s Chief Wahoo prevent Americans from seeing real human beings.

The Cleveland Indians formally announced the change in the offseason following years of lobbying by Native American groups to remove the name. The decision comes amid a wider push for sports teams to stop using Native American names and imagery as team names and mascots. The team name will change, but not immediately, and it is expected to change by 2023. In 2021, the team will change its name to Guardians.

The Cleveland Indians have had their own merry-go-round with team names, with the Atlanta Braves retiring mascot Chief Noc-a-Homa in 2019. If the team is changing the name, the best bet would be Guardians or Sentinels, both having Cleveland history to them. Guardians has a similar history to the Indians, but the team rid itself of the embarrassing minstrelsy of the Chief Wahoo mascot in 2019 but seemed committed to keeping the name “Indians”.

Do Cleveland fans still wear Indians gear?

The team did not formally declare its intention to prohibit fans from wearing specific emblems. However, the erstwhile logo director, Wahoo, articulated his individual disapproval.

What does an Indian mascot represent?

Mascots are often criticized for their negative portrayal of Native Americans, who are often seen as savages. This is due to the social sciences’ recognition that ethnic stereotypes, both positive and negative, are harmful and promote false associations between a group and an attribute. Mascots are considered morally questionable regardless of individual offense.

The National Council of the American Indian (NCAI) and over 1, 500 national Native organizations and advocates have called for a ban on Native imagery, names, and other appropriation of Native culture in sports. The use of such imagery and terms has declined, but it remains fairly common at all levels of American and Canadian sports. Former Representative Deb Haaland (D-New Mexico) has long advocated for teams to change such mascots.

European Americans have a history of “playing Indian” since the colonial period, with fraternal organizations like the Tammany Societies and the Improved Order of Red Men adopting Native American words and culture to establish an aboriginal identity. This practice spread to youth groups like the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) and summer camps, and university students in the late 19th and early 20th centuries adopted Indian names and symbols for their sports teams.

What is the controversy with the Cleveland Indians logo?

The Cleveland Guardians have undergone a transformation in their visual identity, evolving from the 1947 “Chief Wahoo” logo to a baseball with winged letter Gs. This shift has been attributed to the “Guardians of Traffic” statues on a local bridge. The team’s new moniker is a baseball flanked by the letter Gs, as revealed in a Twitter video by actor Tom Hanks.

Was Chief Wahoo a real person?

Chief Wahoo is a Native American caricature used by the Cleveland Indians from 1947 to 2018. The team was renamed the Indians in 1915, and Native American imagery had been used in news coverage since 1932. In 1947, J. F. Novak Co. in Cleveland was commissioned to create a new mascot, which was designed by Walter Goldbach, a senior at Rhodes High School. The caricature was unnamed but started to be referred to by 1950. The following year, Chief Wahoo was redesigned, giving him a different nose and changing his skin tone from orange to red.

He was found on caps, jerseys, and signs throughout Cleveland Municipal Stadium and Jacobs/Progressive Field. A 28-foot-high neon Chief Wahoo in a batting stance was used to stand on top of Gate D of Cleveland Stadium, which is now on display at the Cleveland History Center of the Western Reserve Historical Society.

Do people want the Cleveland Indians back?

The Cleveland Indians are attempting to bring the “Redskins” back to Cleveland, Ohio, by launching a petition drive. The group aims to convince team ownership that renaming their team against the wishes of the majority of fans and season ticket holders was a mistake. If successful, the “Cleveland Indians” could become the first professional sports team to do so, possibly alongside the Redskins. Supporters can sign the petition at chng. it/YdVDBJ5gdD.

How do Native Americans feel about the Atlanta Braves?

Tribal and Native groups have criticized the Atlanta Braves’ stance that the Native community supports the team. National Congress of American Indians President Fawn Sharp stated that the concern over the Braves mascot and “Tomahawk chop” is more than just a local issue. Sharp argued that the name “Braves”, the tomahawk adorning the team’s uniform, and the “tomahawk chop” that the team exhorts fans to perform at home games are meant to depict and caricature not just one tribal community but all Native people. He stated that Native people are not mascots and degrading rituals like the “tomahawk chop” have no place in American society.

What is the story behind the Cleveland Indians mascot?

In 1952, the Indians’ physical mascot, “Chief Wahoo”, was first introduced as the character in a Wahoo costume at a children’s party. Sportswriters later dubbed the character Chief Wahoo, but Goldbach argues that the moniker is inaccurate. Chiefs have full headdresses, and Chief Wahoo only has one feather. In 1951, the mascot was redesigned with a smaller nose and red skin, which was the most long-lived version of the logo. The face of the 1951 logo was incorporated into other full-body depictions of the character.

Ohio sportswriter Terry Pluto describes comics of Chief Wahoo that ran on the front page of the Cleveland Plain Dealer in the 1950s, with the character symbolizing the outcome of a game. Wins were illustrated by Chief Wahoo holding a lantern, while losses were illustrated by a “battered” Chief Wahoo with black eyes, missing teeth, and crumpled feathers.

Why don’t the Atlanta Braves change their name?

In 2013, the Atlanta Braves faced controversy for using the Native American head logo on their spring training caps. After two months of controversy, the team replaced the cap with a different design that did not feature the old mascot. In July 2020, the Washington Redskins and Cleveland Indians announced they were reevaluating their Native American mascots, focusing on the Atlanta Braves team name. The Braves announced that discussions were still ongoing about the chop, but the team name would not be changed.

In an interview, Braves president Terry McGuirk expressed pride in the team’s name and expected to remain the Atlanta Braves. In July 2020, the EBCI released a statement about the tribe’s conversations with the Braves, stating that candid, thoughtful conversations are crucial for educating leaders and bringing about positive change. The NCAI criticized MLB commissioner Manfred’s defense of the mascot and “chop” and reiterated the viewpoint of Native Americans that any caricature representation is harmful.

Why the Cleveland Indians should change their name?

The use of laudatory nicknames contrasts with the practice of using racial caricatures as mascots, such as Chief Wahoo of the Cleveland Indians. The logo has been criticized as “grossly offensive” by Indian Country Today Media Network. Multiple legal and legislative attempts have failed to end the use of Chief Wahoo. In 1972, the Cleveland American Indian Center filed a $9 million suit against the team for libel, slander, and defamation from the use of Chief Wahoo.

Writer Don Oakley criticized the suit, stating that it was “umpteen” dollars in anybody’s vocabulary, including the original Chief Wahoo, the comic strip character who coined the word. The “racism” behind Chief Wahoo will be news to millions of people who have followed the baseball Indians over the years and associate their symbol with real Indians.

Is the tomahawk chop banned?

MBL commissioner Rob Manfred believes the Atlanta-area Native American population supports the Braves program, including the tomahawk chop. However, the Muscogee Nation spokesperson claims that collective support for the tomahawk chop is not the case. The Braves organization is not confined to Atlanta, as winning the World Series has brought their traditions under national scrutiny. The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) has repeatedly stated that Native people are not mascots and degrading rituals like the ‘tomahawk chop’ have no place in American society. The National Congress of American Indians has made their position clear in discussions with the Atlanta Braves.

Will the Cleveland Indians abandon the Chief Wahoo logo next year?

The Major League Baseball Commissioner has determined that the Chief Wahoo logo is inappropriate for use on the field, and the Cleveland Indians will cease using it on their uniforms starting in 2019.