by Zach Bigalke

Created on: December 03, 2007   Last Updated: October 31, 2008

Chief Wahoo is the latest caricature of a particular minority to come under fire for its stereotypical portrayal of an oppressed and/or misrepresented group. Chief Illiniwek has already been banned from University of Illinois football games. The Chicago Blackhawk and the Washington Redskin and the Atlanta Brave are all indicative of a Caucasian culture mired in its ancient colonial mentalities... or is it? It seems that, in this increasingly politically-correct day and age, cartoonish figures and diversions for fans young and old are too offensive for our society. But where is the indignance, the rage, the vocal displeasure from those who would stand to be most offended from these mascots?

Recently, Florida State was allowed to maintain their Seminole only after an appeal to the NCAA - by the Seminole tribe itself. Rarely is it a particular tribe or minority group coming forward to voice its discontent with the policies of either universities or professional sports teams. Rather, it is the work of an incessant and overly sensitive media, attempting to toe a fine vanilla centrist inoffensive line, which has led to the uproar over mascots in recent years. And so it begins with Chief Wahoo, the "red man" logo for the Cleveland Indians of Major League Baseball...

Since 1947, the Indians have been sporting a cartoon depiction of a Native American on their uniforms. The current incarnation of the logo dates back to 1951. And, while in recent years protests deploring the use of the stereotypical cartoon have arisen, the majority of Cleveland and the baseball-watching public in general have made a solid ingrained connection between the logo and the Cleveland Indian franchise. The NAACP, Native American activists and the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights have all spoken out against the use of the mascot; several were arrested after arson was committed in protest of the appearance of a costumed Chief Wahoo at the opening of Jacobs Field in 1994. But despite the backlash, the logo continues to be synonymous with the team in both media reports and officially-licensed merchandise.

The recent backlash against mascots depicting Native American cultures usually represents a small niche cross-section of society - even the majority of Native Americans tend not to give such mascots and logos a second thought. After all, most Americans of Irish descent do not froth angrily at the mouth every time Notre Dame plays on television... and there seems to be no uproar about the co-opting of the Aztec culture for a mascot by San Diego State University, even from the large Hispanic population which originates from the land of the Aztecs. After all, mascots are nothing more than symbolic figures adopted by a team (and most importantly its fan base) as a talisman for good luck... and teams, especially professional teams, adopt these caricatures as money-making vehicles. While the PC police may yet catch up with Chief Wahoo in the same manner they have so many other Native American mascots, it does not seem prudent or justified that they would do so. With all that is truly offensive in this world today, it seems absurd that we would waste our time and resources fighting over a cartoon...

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