Rochester misses the point in mascot debate
by Christine Rose
Students and Teachers Against Racism
I am sorry I did not hear about the Red Raiders mascot issue until today. I would have been happy to speak with members in the school administration.
I work in Native American civil rights in education and file complaints with the U.S. Department of Education and the Department of Justice. We have had many formal complaints of how mascots and logos hurt native children.
Do you think with the way the issue was presented an American Indian child would have felt safe to voice anti-mascot feelings? Do you not see that an oppressive atmosphere was created in the way the whole investigation was handled?
With all due respect, I appreciate that Roland Gerome says his group is not offended. However, I have been to his group and the majority there are not enrolled Indians and look white. The majority are not racially profiled by the color of their skin or called Redskins, or Red Raiders, for their appearance, as might happen in a school that had a population of kids from a reservation.
This is not to say they are not Indian, just that their experiences are different than those who are profiled by their color. They are not in the position to speak for Indians around the country who suffer violence and bullying at the hands of students who think they are entitled to use the image of others and who well may be called red.
In fact, no one group anywhere can speak for all. There are approximately 100 resolutions that tribes around the country have written that take an anti-mascot position. The NCAA has ruled most mascots, such as the Red Raiders, are abusive.
If your school had gotten rid of the mascot, you would not have been trendsetters since this has been going on since the 1970s. However, you would have been part of a growing group of schools which recognize that even the name Red Raiders promotes a negative stereotype, the logo is a garish red, which is inhuman, and you are now teaching students that it is OK to call people whatever they want.
Read an article or two on white privilege (www.racismagainstindians.org, section on understanding the mascot or section on white privilege).
Pity the Indian child who comes into that school. Of course, with an intolerant attitude such as yours, I am sure your 97 percent white town will retain its racial imbalance by successfully keeping any Indian family away.
If you would like real life accounts of what has happened to Indian children who have spoken up about mascots and logos feel free to contact me.
