When I was travelling to Saskatchewan through North Central Montana, I did some research on the area, and was immediately acutely aware of the Indigenous presence in Big Sky Country. Little known towns like Harlem, Cleveland and Chinook that were nothing more than a gas station/general store in most cases.
Off the beaten path, I found Bear Paw Battlefield. The site of the last war between our Government and the Native tribes, who were later forced to live on "Reservations" separated from the developing towns along the newly laid railroad tracks bringing more white settlers and immigrants from Europe and Scandinavia. I stood alone facing a giant field with only the sound of a mild Chinook wind blowing through the grasslands.
I felt very small at that moment.
I came away from the experience with a great deal of respect for what the original dwellers went through here. Back home, I only knew of a few native Americans. One of them was a former Hockey Player who spent some time playing for the Springfield Indians, and was named "Chief" by his teammates due his full-blooded Cree background. None of this seemed to bother him, because he was playing the sport he grew up loving at a professional level, and was enjoying the status and cheers from the fans. If the fans and the actual players didn't seem to mind the Native American imagery... did it matter what other people thought?
Fast Forward to Today: The world's news is in everybody's hands for you to publicly respond with at any time or volume, and our culture is widely circulated and the public has been increasingly weighing in on the issue. Within the past year, two professional sports teams have changed their names. The Cleveland Indians are now known as the Guardians, and the Washington Redskins are now known as the Washington Commanders. That leaves the Chicago Black Hawks, The Atlanta Braves and the Kansas City Chiefs. My opinion is that any faces depicting Native Americans should not be used, and no word describing them should be used either. The Black Hawks definitely need a do over (call them the Hawks or simply use a Raptor as a mascot) and the other two teams need to at least limit what they associate with their names. The Braves probably don't get a pass, even though one could argue the term in plain English could simply mean "courageous" as it was applied to soldiers. However, that is walking a very blurry line. In the case of Kansas City, one could easily translate it to being "The Boss"- like Chief of Police, Fire Chief, Chief Inspector, etc.
They could even have a mascot wearing a Fire Helmet!
Problem Solved! Right?
The bigger problem is the fan culture that surrounds these games.
Watching the Chiefs play in their most recent playoff contest, I was frustrated at the sight of fans in the loud stadium still doing the very dated "Tomahawk Chop" arm gesture and chanting a stereotypical melody, that only exists in old Western Movies. Fans don't seem to want to get rid of this tradition, but have recently been forced not to wear feathered headgear and warpaint.
Why did that take so long?
People have argued that it is a symbol of celebrated tradition, or an honor of our nation's heritage.
If that's your thing? Maybe keep it in the parking lot during the tailgate party, or just at home in front of the TV.
In the end, it really is about getting with the times, and in some cases, progress is being made and things are headed in the right direction. Time will tell how soon and how much that change will happen. I hear "Seven Nation Army" is a popular chant in football stadiums these days, which is a good start.
