The Caledonian-Record
St. Johnsbury, VT
Monday, January 15, 2007
Native Mascots
In August 2006, I wrote a letter to the Green Mountain Union High School Board requesting that they drop our high school's Chieftain mascot because it represents a racial stereotype.
In October, I presented it to the board and, to their credit, they decided not to dismiss the matter out of hand. Meanwhile, members of our community have been expressing their views through the local newspapers. I would like to respond:
1. Regarding those who feel that the Native mascot issue is not my fight: Harm is being done to all our students (Native American and non-Native American) and this is substantiated by research (see link 2 below). Therefore, this is a fight for all academic leaders, educators, students and community members—me included.
2. Regarding those who feel that the Native mascot issue is frivolous: Dr. Cornel Pewewardy describes this issue as: "dysconscious racism and a form of cultural violence." This issue is anything but frivolous. (Please explore the links listed below.)
3. Regarding those who feel that Native mascots have been mascots for so long that they should just remain: Maybe Thomas Paine would've summed this up best: "A long habit of not thinking a thing wrong, gives it a superficial appearance of being right, and raises at first a formidable outcry in defense of custom."
4. Regarding those who feel that Native mascots would be costly to change: Such artifacts, once accepted as being wrong, often increase in market value; additionally, Native mascots could soon become too costly to not change given the increasingly fertile grounds for lawsuits based on harassment or discrimination.
5. Regarding those who feel that Native mascots in non-Native schools are honoring and respecting Native Americans: given our historical patterns, I'm surprised we haven't "honored and respected" Native Americans out of existence. If we want to honor and respect Native Americans, as others have said before me, then we should honor and respect the treaties we made with them. Also, many schools adopted Native mascots adorned with religious symbols before the passing of the American Indian Religious Freedom Act of 1978. By not recognizing Native religious symbols as religious symbols in schools, is this yet another example of "honoring and respecting?" We can do better. And we can ask Native Americans how they would like to be honored and respected.
In October 2005, the American Psychological Association released a statement - due to the preponderance of scientific evidence - regarding the damage Native mascots in non-Native schools inflict upon all students and, as a result, composed a referendum calling for the end of Native mascots in all schools across the United States. to follow the recommendations of an A.P.A. referendum would be best practices. To be aware of the referendum, and then deliberately ignore its recommendations would be worst practices. Additionally, the U.S Commission on Civil Rights, the National Education Association, and many State Departments of Education have called for an end to Native mascot use in public schools. But this is not news to the Abenaki and other Native Americans who for years have been asking New England public schools to drop Native mascots.
In Genocide of the Mind: New Native American Writing, MariJo Moore writes: "For many years, the dominant society has admired the mythological Indian but rarely the genuine person. Many today still look upon Indians a people of the past. These two beliefs have perpetuated the idea that using Indians as mascots is permissible. If one uses a term that is offensive to others without realizing it is offensive, this action can be considered stereotyping. But, if one become informed that the term is offensive and continues to use the term, this is pure racism. After all, American Indians are human being, not animals, and not people of the past. Therefore we should not be used as mascots."
Presently, many schools persist in using racial stereotypes and promote racism even after they have been informed that those images are offensive and damaging. If Euro-Americans are sincere and authentic when they say that they wish to honor and respect Native Americans, they should begin by dropping all Native mascots in non-Native schools.
For more information, see:
1. www.apa.org/releases/AmIndRes101805.html
2. www.apa.org/releases/ResAmIndianMascots.pdf
3. www.aicsorg/mascot/cornel.html
4. www.abenakination.org/eugenics.html
5. www.racismagainstindians.org/STARArticle/Resolutions.html
6. www.iwchildren.org/silentgenocide.htm
7. www.aistm.org/1indexpage.htm
8. www.unitednativeamerica.com/aiholocaust.html
9. www.sanfacon.com/mascots
Sincerely,
Brad Houk
Chester, VT