The college football and pro football seasons are just around the corner, and once again we'll probably be treated to the annual sideshow of protests by activists decrying the use of certain nicknames and mascots by some universities and pro teams.  In the NFL, the Redskins and Chiefs seem to be the primary offenders, and the colleges include several that have Braves as their nickname, as well as the Fighting Illini and the Seminoles.

For the most part, these protesters need to get a life.  The majority of these teams demonstrate respect and honor the values of those Native Americans that they portray; there is no mockery or demeaning attempted, and any reading into the situation of such is the person's own biases coming into play.  The University of Illinois has retired the mascot Chief Illiniwek, and unless the remaining members of the Illinois tribe (if there is such a thing) come together to protest the continuing use of the nickname, they should be left alone.  Florida State enjoys a unique and healthy relationship with the Seminole Nation, who have voted to allow the university to continue with their nickname and mascot; thus, this school should never come up in this discussion.  But it always does, which goes to show the slash-and-burn techniques of the protesters.

The one exception to this, probably, is the Washington Redskins.  This nickname is indeed defamatory and bigoted, and the pro football club would do well to look at alternatives.  St. John's University had a similar problem with the nickname Redmen, and they changed it to Red Storm (somewhat nebulous, but more appropriate).  Nicknames such as Chiefs, Braves, and Warriors, however, are reflective of a group, rather than a particular tribe or people, and these team names cannot be said to be defamatory unless the mascot is a mockery of the proud heritage of Native Americans.

My home town of Tonganoxie, Kansas, was named after a Delaware Indian who lived in the area circa 1867 (when the town was founded), and who helped early settlers get along with the Indian tribes of the region, as well as learn to live in an area which occasionally has hostile animals and weather.  The high school nickname is the Chieftains, and the junior high team is named the Warriors.  I have yet to hear of any Delaware Indian protest against these nicknames, and there is no mascot for the teams, so I believe there is no problem here.  To hear some people tell it, though, ANY Indian-derived name is bigoted and defamatory, and thus even my small-town teams should not have these names.

Of course this is a ridiculous position.  The Cold Hard Fact of this issue is that the protestors are looking for their fifteen minutes of fame, and a large monetary settlement from the teams and universities involved.  They don't care about the portrayal of Native Americans in the slightest.  If they DID, they would have brought suit against the States of Kansas, Illinois, Delaware, and others for "stealing" their tribal names, and this has not occurred.  The whining about Native American nicknames needs to stop.  At least those entities remember the original Americans, and wish to honor them.  If the protestors had their way, my home town would have to change its' name from Tonganoxie to something less "affronting" to certain sensibilities, and I doubt the good people of my town care to live in "Ward-Churchillton".