NEW, MORE APPROPRIATE, CLEVELAND “INDIAN”
Posted on May 2, 2008 - Filed Under Indian Mascots |
A recent editorial in the Cleveland Plain Dealer, entitled “Chief Wahoo Should Go”, encouraged the demise of the Cleveland Indians logo. We agree that it is long overdue for the retirement of Chief Wahoo, and the “Indians” mascot. The editorial cited Sen. Barack Obama’s recent speech on race in the United States
The editorial rightly points out that Chief Wahoo lives on today because Indian protests of the icon fall mostly on deaf ears. We as tribal members are invisible to the vast general public. When we do speak up, we are told to shut up and be “honored” or that we represent “political correctness” run amok. We also frequently hear “don’t you have bigger problems to worry about?” My response has always been that fighting ignorance and racism is a pretty good justification of my time and efforts.
The executive director of the Cleveland NAACP, Stanley Miller, was somewhat sympathetic to tribal members when he stated, “It makes me feel bad,” he said that if a similar icon was used to portray black Americans, “the NAACP would be up in arms about it. The Urban League would be up in arms about it.” He further stated that “At some point, the silent majority of this community has to stand up and say ‘Enough is enough.’ And we just haven’t done that.”
We at Honor Indians Institute ask Mr. Miller, why haven’t you spoken up on the issue? As you stated, you would not sit silently if the mascot were the CLEVELAND NEGROES:
We have already offered an alternative Cleveland ENGINES mascot, but now we introduce a more appropriate and correct alternative to Chief Wahoo. We offer the new CLEVELAND INDIANS icon:
As always, we are here, not just to complain, but to offer solutions!!!
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