Term Paper Option 4
Andrea Castro Mascots are big in the NCAA, and they should be. Mascots are the ultimate pride of the team, but just because they are so important when it comes to different sport teams, they shouldn’t mock the lives and history of Native American Culture. When team mascots run around with cultural attire on it creates an illusion that racism is acceptable in sports. Offensive mascots in the NCAA do not only question racism, but they also create social conflict. Assessing the history of NCAA mascots and legislative decisions regarding them, we can identify how disagreements regarding culture are inescapable and sometimes argued against. For instance, the importance of tradition in America is a part of our culture, but more importantly respecting differences in other cultures, especially when several different groups have suffered a great deal due to racism and oppression, is equally important. American Indian Counselor Denis Tibbetts even says, “to have a Chief as entertainment is a mockery” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lUF95ThI7s&feature=youtu.be). Some people do not see these mascots as a mockery though, some people think tradition is important and should not be altered. I interviewed Renee Padilla to ask her, her thoughts on Native American mascots. I chose to use her interview because her answers were blunt and she herself is part Cherokee Indian. “I don’t think people should mess with tradition. There’s always something someone out there does that someone doesn’t like and if something has been around for decades just leave it be. I think people spend too much time on little things like this when they could be working hard to fight for something that directly impacts everybody in the community.” I asked her if she would feel the same if the mascots were targeting other races such as Mexicans or Blacks and she gave me the following statement: “I’m Mexican and Cherokee Indian and these mascots don’t bother me. If it was something that’s been there forever like I said before, leave it be, but if someone did it today, it might be an issue because I wouldn’t be used to it.” Her last statement made me think about tradition and how when something never changes and is the same constant for society, it explains a bit why some may be opposed to the idea of disallowing mascots that target various races or identities. For over eighty years the University of Illinois’ mascot was Chief Illiniwek. It was not until 2007, that this school decided to “retire the mascot.” (Kaufman). This was only nine years ago. Other schools, such as Omaha University, also used fictitious characters that used pieces of Native American history. Lloyd Roitstein, a former student of Omaha University was the school’s …show more content…
This is a great example of how Generation Y was educated about Native American Culture. Education of all levels often show the struggles of African American and Jewish culture in history. We are taught what they have went through in the past and their struggles to be truly free individuals in todays’ society. American Indian culture, when taught in schools was mainly focused on accessories in the Native American life. Things like beadwork, arrowheads, and feathers are all too familiar when I think back to elementary school. It is not that these things are not important because they most definitely are, but education should show the good, and the bad. When I got older and ventured into high-school, eventually we were taught about Native Americans losing their lands to the White Man, but never the grisly horrors that took place. We were not taught about their children being taken with them and stripped of their culture. We were never taught fully about the inequality they faced when it comes to history. I think W.E.B. Du Bois said it best, “The Nation has not yet found peace from its sins; the freedman has not yet found in freedom his promised land.” (Du Bois 11) So when someone dresses up as an Indian mascot, this is degrading to many Native Americans and it takes what Du Bois has said and proves his point. This paints an image that racism or mockery of American Indians is tolerable, but for other races it is wrong. American Indian history does not get the attention it deserves in a world where equality is supposed to be
Andrea Castro Mascots are big in the NCAA, and they should be. Mascots are the ultimate pride of the team, but just because they are so important when it comes to different sport teams, they shouldn’t mock the lives and history of Native American Culture. When team mascots run around with cultural attire on it creates an illusion that racism is acceptable in sports. Offensive mascots in the NCAA do not only question racism, but they also create social conflict. Assessing the history of NCAA mascots and legislative decisions regarding them, we can identify how disagreements regarding culture are inescapable and sometimes argued against. For instance, the importance of tradition in America is a part of our culture, but more importantly respecting differences in other cultures, especially when several different groups have suffered a great deal due to racism and oppression, is equally important. American Indian Counselor Denis Tibbetts even says, “to have a Chief as entertainment is a mockery” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lUF95ThI7s&feature=youtu.be). Some people do not see these mascots as a mockery though, some people think tradition is important and should not be altered. I interviewed Renee Padilla to ask her, her thoughts on Native American mascots. I chose to use her interview because her answers were blunt and she herself is part Cherokee Indian. “I don’t think people should mess with tradition. There’s always something someone out there does that someone doesn’t like and if something has been around for decades just leave it be. I think people spend too much time on little things like this when they could be working hard to fight for something that directly impacts everybody in the community.” I asked her if she would feel the same if the mascots were targeting other races such as Mexicans or Blacks and she gave me the following statement: “I’m Mexican and Cherokee Indian and these mascots don’t bother me. If it was something that’s been there forever like I said before, leave it be, but if someone did it today, it might be an issue because I wouldn’t be used to it.” Her last statement made me think about tradition and how when something never changes and is the same constant for society, it explains a bit why some may be opposed to the idea of disallowing mascots that target various races or identities. For over eighty years the University of Illinois’ mascot was Chief Illiniwek. It was not until 2007, that this school decided to “retire the mascot.” (Kaufman). This was only nine years ago. Other schools, such as Omaha University, also used fictitious characters that used pieces of Native American history. Lloyd Roitstein, a former student of Omaha University was the school’s …show more content…
This is a great example of how Generation Y was educated about Native American Culture. Education of all levels often show the struggles of African American and Jewish culture in history. We are taught what they have went through in the past and their struggles to be truly free individuals in todays’ society. American Indian culture, when taught in schools was mainly focused on accessories in the Native American life. Things like beadwork, arrowheads, and feathers are all too familiar when I think back to elementary school. It is not that these things are not important because they most definitely are, but education should show the good, and the bad. When I got older and ventured into high-school, eventually we were taught about Native Americans losing their lands to the White Man, but never the grisly horrors that took place. We were not taught about their children being taken with them and stripped of their culture. We were never taught fully about the inequality they faced when it comes to history. I think W.E.B. Du Bois said it best, “The Nation has not yet found peace from its sins; the freedman has not yet found in freedom his promised land.” (Du Bois 11) So when someone dresses up as an Indian mascot, this is degrading to many Native Americans and it takes what Du Bois has said and proves his point. This paints an image that racism or mockery of American Indians is tolerable, but for other races it is wrong. American Indian history does not get the attention it deserves in a world where equality is supposed to be