SPORTS TEAMS NAME CONTROVERSY

Nick Abbate

MLB The main teams that are in the national spotlight

are the Atlanta Braves and the Cleveland Indians

They both are considered offensive by Native Americans, but for different reasons

Atlanta Braves Mayor Kasim Reed said he wouldn’t be in favor of

Atlanta’s MLB organization, which has gone by the name Braves since 1912, changing names."I do not," the mayor told the news outlet. "I think that the name the Atlanta Braves is a name that we should keep; and I have a number of friends who are Indians, and they haven't shared any offense with me about it. So I go by my experiences." 

The name was given to the team by its then owner to honor Tamanend, a chief of delaware

Cleveland Indians The Indians are considered offensive because of the name

and the fact that the logo looks like a caricature

The Cleveland Indians have quietly removed the Indian logo from their helmet and their team website so they have avoided much of protest from Native American Tribes

Cleveland Indians

Local Native Americans have been protesting against the name and mascot since opening day in 1973.

The logo of the Cleveland Indians is offensive because it plays on most of the stereotypes of Native Americans.

According to the team, their name came from a famous player named Louis Sockalexis who was an Native American.

NFL The one team that everyone seems to know is the

Redskins, but there are some more that can be considered offensive such as the Kansas City Chiefs and the Minnesota Vikings

Redskins Native Americans are calling for the change of

name

Less than 10% are calling for the change, but this team has the most media coverage

The term Redskins is considered a slur to Native Americans

They sing “Hail to the Redskins” before

every game

Redskins Also, the term Redskins refers to the literal

“red skin” that bounty hunters would collect in order to be paid for the number of Native Americans they slaughtered.

Native American groups are saying that the term “Redskins” is comparable with the offensive nature of the “n” word.

Native Americans feel that the name disgraces their culture and is an insult to their heritage.

Chiefs and Vikings The Chiefs feature an arrow head as their logo

and a Chief is in charge of a Tribe so how is it not offensive to the Native Americans

The Vikings back in the day used to pillage villages and kill tons of people how are they not in the spotlight

Kansas City Chiefs When the team moved from Dallas to Kansas

City they changed their name from the Texans to the Chiefs.

Even though some find the name offensive, it is not meant to be at all.

The team was named after a Civic Leader and executive for the boy scouts of America.

His name was H. Roe Bartle. Bartle got his nickname “chief” during his time

with the boy scouts.

NHL There is not a single team that is considered

“offensive”, but there should be, take the Blackhawks and for example

Chicago Blackhawks Obama has put his two cents in about the

Redskins debate, but he has neglected to acknowledge the fact that his home town Blackhawks could be considered offensive

Many people say that the team is basing it off of the military plane called the Blackhawk, but they chose a Native American as their logo

so that is not true

Chicago Blackhawks The Chicago Blackhawks are one of the few

teams that have an Native American name but people don’t care that much about it.

One reason fort this could be that Chicago has a very small Native American community.

This could also be because hockey is not nearly as popular as other sports.

Another reason is because the Chicago Blackhawks support a local American Indian organization.

Soccer The Tottenham Hotspurs is not considered

offensive itself.

The controversy comes from what the fans call themselves

They call themselves the Yids which is a term that is directed towards Jewish people

Edmonton Eskimos

. The Edmonton Eskimos (Canadian football) name outdates all other sports team names now under fire in North America. The origins of the word “Eskimo” are believed to be Cree, and it was a term for the Inuit. The vernacular is a slur (eaters of raw meat) while academic research suggests the original is more benign (snowshoe maker).

Florida State Seminoles

The university has worn the nickname "Seminoles" since 1947 and annually crowns a Chief and Princess at Homecoming with Seminole tribe leaders participating as celebrants.

The tribe attorney general Jennifer McBee stated "I am deeply appalled, incredulously disappointed ... I am nauseated that the NCAA is allowing this 'minstrel show' to carry on this form of racism in the 21st century.“

The tribe officially sanctions FSU's use of Seminoles as a nickname and Chief Osceola as a mascot. Max Osceola, the chief and general council president of the Seminole Tribe of Florida, said that it was an "honor" to be associated with FSU.

London Rippers

The London Rippers are a baseball team out of London that were accused of naming their team after a famous serial killer.

The team was obviously named after the 19th century killer Jack the Ripper.

Jack the Ripper was known for stalking and brutalizing women.