A New Year, A New Decade, A New Blog

As not only a new year but a new decade begins, we turn the corner on a decade that brought many earth shaking moments to our country. From 9/11 to the first Black President of the United States, our country has endured both trying times and joyous times. I personally have gone from a small minded, sports is everything, Rec&Ed team playing fifth grader who barely knew that girls existed to a college student in my third year at the University of Michigan trying to make a career out of my love for sports. Although I still might not know if girls exhist or not, I do believe that I have enough experience and have received enough education to share my thoughts and opinions with certainty. I am also quite receptive to criticism and questions. This all being said, I am starting this blog, Sports, Society, and Shtuff, so that I can share my thoughts and commentary on current events. Be they sports occurrences, world wide events, or just general rants (I'll do my best to prevent those), I will do my best to post daily something that will be of interest to my readers. I look forward to sports year that includes the Winter Olympics and FIFA World Cup, a movie world that will see if James Cameron's Avatar is all that its cracked up to be, and hopefully an economic year that includes a turnaround for our country. As I wrap up this post, I hope everyone had a fun and safe New Year's Eve and my personal suggestion is to try and enjoy a little College Football action today.

Pick of the Day: Oregon - 31 Ohio State - 23
Fake Pick of the Day: Boston Bruins - 4 Philadelphia Flyers - 1 (If the game is played

Sidenote: All the previous posts were for a project I did and do not pertain to this blog. Although, I high suggesting reading through them. They are all quite interesting and informative.

My Final Words

In today's society, being politically correct is very important. No one wants to frustrate anyone else. Or, worse yet, embarrass or offend someone else. I do think though that this is a very valid point. There is no place for racism anywhere in sport. I think the fact that there is still a professional football team named the "Redskins" is very much offensive and disappointing. Especially considering they reside in our nation's capital. And myself, being of Irish descent, do find the Notre Dame Fighting Irish logo a bit offensive. I am not visually upset by it, but I would be lying if I said I was ok with it. I believe what the NCAA has done is correct and necessary. They have set the bar for other groups to change as well. I witnessed three local high schools within the past three years change their names and logos. My own baseball team while I was in middle school changed our main logo from "Chief Wahoo" to the "Script 'I'" that the Indians have (we were the Indians as well). People are more aware now and are making the correct decisions. I look forward to hearing what is decided on with the North Dakota case and I hope schools and professional teams in the future are more careful with what they decide to brand their team as. I do not care how "classic" a look is, or how much money it will cost to change. No person should have to look at a grinning cartoon version of their race and be told that it is not offensive.

The Last Battle: North Dakota

As of this past week, there is only one unresolved case from when the NCAA deemed 20 or so schools were using Native American names and logos in a disrespectful manner. Many of the teams appealed and tried to show that they were in-fact being quite respectful and had the approval of the surrounding tribes. The last case would be that of the University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux. North Dakota was one of the teams that the NCAA suggested to change their name and/or logo. The Fighting Sioux appealed the decision and has been trying to gain support from the surround tribes. Many Native American students on campus feel like they use the profile of a Native American in an embarassing manner. Many others, especially those of actual Sioux descent are in favor. It has been a hot topic in North Dakota for the past few years and it sounds as if in the very near future we will have an outcome. On Wednesday, December 9, 2009 the State of North Dakota argued against Spirit Lake, a reservation 100 miles outside of UND's campus, who has a restraining order from a deal that North Dakota must figure this situation out before November of 2010. There is no result yet from the case between the reservation and the state. The majority of the other schools who were faced with this problem resolved it quickly. Obviously Florida State had the Seminole Tribe's full support. Most of the problem is just that there is no general consensus between the local tribes of North Dakota. Hopefully a decision will be made in the near future. No other school wants to play against them, because it could possibly be supporting a "politically incorrect" school. No one wants to not support them, because it would be disrespectful of the Sioux Tribe. Its a controversial issue that needs an answer and needs one soon, or else North Dakota's popularity and pocket will suffer even more.

For more on the Fighting Sioux's case you can visit: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/09/us/09nickname.html?_r=1

For a picture review of logo changes of other schools, visit:
http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2009/12/09/us/1209NICKNAME_index.html

Other Areas of Not-OK

When people discuss whether or not teams should have to change their names or logos because they are considered not politically correct or offensive, many people argue that there are other teams that should do the same. A common "devil's advocate" is arguing that the University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish is offensive to many Irish. The logo that Notre Dame uses is one of a leprechaun in a fighting manner. This logo only furthers a common stigma that people of Irish descent are argumentative/tend to fight more than others. It is one also that many people are proud of and stand behind. Many other team names, such as the Vikings, Flying Dutchmen, or Ragin' Cajuns, could be construed to suggest disrespect towards people of that descent.

Another prime example of team names and logos that have changed due to possible political incorrectness would be the Washington Wizards of the NBA, who previously were the Washington Bullets. In 1995 Abe Pollin, owner of the team, decided to change the name because of the violent undertones of the team name "Bullets". This was primarily due to the high homicide and general crime rates in the nation, especially in the greater Washington D.C. area. The team name "Wizards" was chosen yet received much negative feedback. Washington's population is predominantly black and because the Wizard is a high-ranking position in the KKK, this was a very controversial decision, but one that was made nonetheless.

More on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish can be read here:

http://www.ndsmcobserver.com/2.2756/fighting-irish-moniker-found-offensive-1.265846#5

More on the Wizards/Bullets can be read here:

http://www.nba.com/wizards/mailbox/abepollin_030909.html

Current Professional Teams

In the four major professional sports leagues in the US, a total of 6 teams use logos or have team names in reference to Native Americans.

MLB: Atlanta Braves, Cleveland Indians

NFL: Kansas City Chiefs, Washington Redskins

NBA: Golden State Warriors*

NHL: Chicago Blackhawks

*Although the Golden State Warriors are named after the idea of Native American warriors, they have never used any obvious logos or symbols referencing Native Americans.

Also to note, the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League are named after a Native American Tribe.

How Far Have We Come?

As of today, many schools have changed their names and logos. To name a few, Miami of Ohio has become the Red Hawks, replacing the Redskins; the Illinois Fighting Illini changed their official logo from a representation of Chief Illiniwek to a Block "I" with Illinois spelled across it; and Marquette University changed it's name from the Warriors to the Golden Eagles. The one thing to point out though is that these teams are all schools. Universities, colleges, high schools, and middle schools all across the country have put in effort to show respect to the Native American Tribes across the country. Unfortunately, there has been little to no response by professional teams. The Atlanta Braves, Washington Redskins, and Cleveland Indians still exist, to name a few. The Indians have made the closest to what you might call "a change" in that they instituted an "alternate logo" which is a script "I". Joe Gibbs, a former coach of the Washington Redskins, also tried to push the script "R" logo for the Redskins while he manned the sidelines, as opposed to their normal logo, the profile of a Native American.

You may wonder why they are being held back from changing. It all comes down to money. Between licensing agreements, and having strong ties with recognizable logos, a team re-branding itself can be brutal to the franchise. The Cleveland Indians made an attempt, but the fact that they have a grinning, large nosed, red-skinned Native American on their hats everyday is not necessarily enough progress if you ask me.

Seminoles Get the Waiver

The Florida State Seminoles are an interesting exception to the rule. They have had a mascot Chieftain played by a caucasian male student parade around the sidelines of their sporting events for years, going back as far as 1958. In 1972, the leaders of the Seminole Indian Tribe attended a FSU basketball game to see what exactly was considered to be representive of them. After the game, the leaders expressed their concern over the mascot and that version was retired. In 1978, the 19th century Seminole chief Chief Osceola and Renegade the Horse replaced the previous mascots. Chief Osceola was designed with the approval of the Seminole Indian Tribe and has been the official mascot of Florida State athletics ever since.

The rather interesting part to all of this is that when the NCAA recently decided to officially put an end to demeaning usage of Native American imagery and names, Florida State received a waiver. This was due to their work with the Seminole Indian Tribe. Florida State has always been nothing but respectful of the name and has always worked closely with the Tribe. As a result, the NCAA deamed that they were in fact not being demeaning and have been able to keep their team name, logo, and mascot unlike many other schools.

For further reading, visit:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NatNews/message/39441

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/2005-08-23-fsu-mascot-approved_x.htm

The Eastern Michigan No-Names?

Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, MI, just down the street from the University of Michigan, had a bit of an identity crisis back in 1991. In 1988, the Michigan Department of Civil Rights issued a report that called for all schools using Native American names, logos, or symbols. At the time of the report, 4 colleges, 62 high schools, and 33 junior high/middle schools all had Native American names, logos, or symbols. In May of 1991 the EMU Board of Regents voted to change the name of the athletic teams from the Hurons to the Eagles. Unfortunately, according to Eastern Michigan University's Wikipedia.com page, during the 1991 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament, it was known that the university was going to change its name, but not known what to. Brent Musburger, while calling the game, mentioned the controversy and referred to the team as the "Eastern Michigan No-Names."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_Michigan_University

http://www.emueagles.com/sports/2005/10/27/EMUTraditions.aspx

Charlene Teters

"People are playing with symbols that are central to our religion," Charlene Teters said, explaining her fight against the use of Native American images in collegiate and professional sports. "Ignorance is our biggest enemy. We need to deal with very, very basic issues before we can be heard."

-Rebecca A. Doyle, The University Record 1/25/1999

Charlene Teters is the founding member of the board of the National Coalition on Racism in Sports and the Media. She is also a Spokane American Indian. Teters was a freshman at the University of Illinois - Champaign in 1988 and instantly knew there was a problem. She took her children to a basketball game at the school. The University of Illinois are known as the Fighting Illini, and have their mascot, Chief Illiniwek, parade around the sidelines of sporting events to cheer the team on. At halftime of the basketball game, Chief Illiniwek performed his normal, "...genuine native dance." (Doyle, 1999) This dance sparked a fire under Teters, who watched as her children were visibly uncomfortable watching this supposed tribal dance. Teters soon used her powerful speaking and artistic abilities to show how demeaning these names and logos were to change many a high school and college names and logos. Yet, to this day, many professional teams have not budged.

To read more on Charlene, click here:

http://www.ur.umich.edu/9899/Jan25_99/teters.htm

NCAA: Are you politically correct?

Within two years the NCAA had looked at the majority of schools with controversial names, logos, or mascots. The results can be seen here:

http://www.ncaa.org/wps/ncaa?key=/ncaa/ncaa/media+and+events/press+room/current+issues/general+information/ncaa+news+releases+on+native+american+mascots

The NCAA: First Step

The National Collegiate Athletic Association was one of the first athletic groups to really try to put an end to the use of insensitive use of symbols and names of Native Americans by teams. On August 5, 2005 the NCAA adopted a new policy that prohibited the use of Native American names, logos, mascots, etc. to compete in NCAA Championships. Now, the prohibition was mandated, but teams that had Native American logos, team names, or symbols were allowed to present to the NCAA why they felt that they were being respectful and should be allowed to continue their use of Native American symbols or names.

http://www.ncaa.org/wps/ncaa?key=/ncaa/NCAA/Media and Events/Press Room/News Release Archive/2005/Announcements/NCAA Executive Committee Issues Guidelines for Use of Native American Mascots at Championship Events

Politically Incorrect Teams and Logos

Over the past 20 years or so there has been a sudden increase in a call for teams to have "politically correct" team names and logos. The main reason behind this would be the many team names and logos referring to Native Americans or Native American Tribes. Many large professional teams, including the Washington Redskins, Chicago Blackhawks, and the Cleveland Indians, have names and/or logos that could easily be construed as offensive to Native Americans and those of Native American descent. Native American team names and logos are not the only ones that are being changed though. As I will show, many team names and logos across the country have been criticized and changed as of late.