List of sports team names and mascots derived from indigenous peoples

Contents

The following is a list of sports team names and mascots derived from indigenous peoples, including generically used terms, those named after specific peoples, and words or iconography derived from indigenous languages or traditions. Also see, List of ethnic sports team and mascot names which includes both names derived from peoples indigenous to the area where a sports team is based, as well as names derived from peoples not indigenous to the teams home.

There is considerable controversy over these team names and mascots because various activist groups, including some of American Indian background, view them as disrespectful and offensive. Most notably, the National Congress of American Indians has issued a resolution opposing continued usage of Native team names, mascots, and logos. Some tribal entities have issued resolutions opposing usage as well. Conversely, certain tribes have granted permission to use their names for sports teams, as in the case of the Chippewa [1] and Seminole[2] tribes for Central Michigan University and Florida State University, respectively.

According to a 2002 Sports Illustrated article (Price, S.L. "The Indian Wars", March 4, 2002, pp 66–72), 83% of American Indian respondents to a Sports Illustrated poll said that professional teams should not stop using Indian nicknames, mascots, or symbols.

Some have challenged the Sports Illustrated findings. Using a Marxist approach that typically rejects surveys and social science, King, et al. (2002) argue (1) the SI poll is problematic because it serves to distract readers from the history and implications of mascots. (2) The survey features problematic sampling and identification issues produce non-representative and un-generalizable findings (for example, Snipp (1992) writes of the difficulty involved in any quantitative research on American Indians in national polling). (3) SI decontextualizes mascots and the controversy about them. (4) The article discussing the poll concludes that mascots are unproblematic merely because a majority of polled Native people say they are, thus discounting the validity of a critical minority. Finally, (5) the consequences for public debate and social justice are ignored by the poll, which treats the issue as critically as SI treats sports injuries or debate over which teams will make the playoffs.

On the other side of the debate, there are those who cite statistics from a 2005 Washington Post article that argues that a large majority of ethnically Native Americans are not at all offended by "Indian" mascots. The article even claims that some are proud of this mascot names. Some examples used are the Southeastern Oklahoma State University's Savages being endorsed by the Chief of the Choctaw Nation, and the endorsement of the Florida State Seminoles by the Seminole Tribe.[3] In 2009, enrolled tribal members on the Spirit Lake Sioux reservation in North Dakota voted two-to-one to support the continued use of the Fighting Sioux nickname by the University of North Dakota.[4]

Team names

American Football

Association Football (Soccer)

Baseball

Basketball

Canadian Football

Ice Hockey

Lacrosse

Rugby

Schools

Other

Defunct names

Mascots

Defunct mascots

University of Oklahoma, Big Red

Fictional Teams

"Chief" nickname

It is also common practice to use the nickname "Chief" for indigenous sportsmen. Some notable examples include:

However, use of the "Chief" nickname is not necessarily limited to indigenous sportsmen.

Kansas City mayor (1952–1960) H. Roe Bartle began his career as a Professional Boy Scout Executive, whereupon he founded an honor camping society (Mic-O-Say) for the Boy Scouts in the St Joseph, MO and Kansas City, MO Boy Scout Councils. As founder of Mic-O-Say and "Chief" (Lone Bear,as he was known in Mic-O-Say circles), Bartle was instrumental in bringing the AFL Dallas Texans to Kansas City, MO in 1963. The transplanted AFL franchise was renamed the "Chiefs" in his honor.

Basketball Hall of Famer Robert Parish, an African American, was nicknamed "The Chief", after Chief Bromden, a Native American character in the novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and its film adaptation who pretended to be deaf and mute. Parish was originally given the nickname by Boston Celtics teammate Cedric Maxwell because of his stoic nature.

See also

References

  1. ^ Tribe feels Chippewa nickname is an honor | Central Michigan Life
  2. ^ Florida State University thanks Seminoles for historic vote of support
  3. ^ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/16/AR2005111602394.html
  4. ^ http://www.grandforksherald.com/event/article/id/115793
  5. ^ See also: Washington Redskins mascot controversy.
  6. ^ The Hockey News: Special Features: THN.com's NHL Logo Rankings
  7. ^ 'Fighting Illini FAQ' | Univeristy of Illinois Archives
  8. ^ http://portagedailyregister.com/news/article_8728019c-af14-11de-acf5-001cc4c03286.html
  9. ^ Tamalpais High School official site: History of Tam High, accessed 10/08/2006

King, C. Richard, Ellen J. Staurowsky, Lawrence Baca, Laurel R. Davis, and Cornel Pewewardy 2002. Of Polls and Prejudice: Sports Illustrated’s Errant ‘Indian Wars’. Journal of Sport & Social Issues 26 (4), November: 381-402.

External links