Adopting Native American Names - Abandoning Redskins Research Paper

Adopting Native American Names - Abandoning Redskins - Research Paper Example Controversial cases of adoptions of Native American symbols and names for the emblems, mascots, and names of sports’ teams are the ‘Chief Wahoo’ mascot, supporters’ ceremony named the ‘Tomahawk Chop’, the professional basketball team Atlanta ‘Braves’, and possibly the most notorious of all, the name of professional football team—Washington ‘Redskins’ (Yiannakis & Melnick 204).Native Americans and other groups have been demanding to eradicate this tradition as they regard it to be disrespectful, insulting, and racially prejudiced. This paper argues that racial stereotyping as such, whether ‘good’ or ‘bad’, is damaging, and condemns the notion that such team names like ‘Redskins’ value Native Americans. Therefore, this paper argues that the Washington, D.C. professional football team should change its name/mascot in response to recent criticism. Colman McCarthy of the Washington Post argues that â€Å"’Redskins’ is a slur name that smells with the stench of racism† (Yiannakis & Melnick 204). Almost all of the new supporters of the team are not aware of the historical framework of the team’s racial prejudice. The ‘Redskins’, not once acclaimed for broad-minded race dealings, were the last team in the National Football League to accept African American athletes and were only forced to do so by the 1957 Stadium Act (Stapleton 15). The way racial minority groups call themselves—for instance, ‘Native American’, ‘black’, or ‘Negro’—is very important for those belonging to these groups. The way other people see them not merely works as a proof of the nature of intergroup relationships or affairs, but can actually be a critical, momentous issue. Racial insults, whether caused by deep-seated hatreds or of thoughtless stereotypes, breed hard feelings or enmity and usually deteriorate into violence or aggression (Stapleton 38). In an effort to show higher cultural respect, several academies, such as Stanford, Miami of Ohio, and Eastern Michigan, have given up their old Native American-based team labels. In numerous cases, opponents have criticized these movements as confirmation that political correctness is going berserk on universities (King 29).