Offensive sports nicknames/logos

[DG_ThenNowForever]

I spent a bit of time staring at the Blackhawks logo trying to get offended, but it didn't work. It's just an ugly profile of a Native American/Indian/whatever. I'm more offended by their terrible play, year after year.

However, I do think Chief Wahoo and the Redskins name are offensive, for reasons most people are already familiar with. The trouble is, the images/names are so iconic, it'd be devastating to lose them.

I'd hate to be Daniel Snyder. Check that, I'd LOVE to be Daniel Snyder, but I'd hate to have to be the person responsible for keeping or changing that name. Chris Rock's sendup of the Redskins' name in New York seemed pretty accurate to me and Snyder has to spend every day pretending the name is okay.

[Hat Boy]

The New Jersey Devils are definitely not offensive to me, but go to a church and they'll be angry I guess.

Is it time again already for some education? I feel like I just posted this.

(Oh wait! I did... HERE.)

The NJ Devils have nothing to do with the Antichrist. (Nor do the Duke Blue Devils, or Tampa Bay Devil Rays.) It's New Jersey folklore; seeing as how you list your location as "Nuevo Brunswick, Nuevo Jersey", you could probably find someone to get you up to speed on the specifics of the Jersey Devil.

The horse is dead; put the whip down...

EyeAmRaps88 may know the story of the Jersey Devil, but that doesn't mean some religious nut bag will not be offended by it. When some people are trying to promote an agenda, they don't let little things like "facts" get in the way.

[leopard88]

The New Jersey Devils are definitely not offensive to me, but go to a church and they'll be angry I guess.

Is it time again already for some education? I feel like I just posted this.

(Oh wait! I did... HERE.)

The NJ Devils have nothing to do with the Antichrist. (Nor do the Duke Blue Devils, or Tampa Bay Devil Rays.) It's New Jersey folklore; seeing as how you list your location as "Nuevo Brunswick, Nuevo Jersey", you could probably find someone to get you up to speed on the specifics of the Jersey Devil.

The horse is dead; put the whip down...

EyeAmRaps88 may know the story of the Jersey Devil, but that doesn't mean religious nut bags will not be offended by it. When some people are trying to promote an agenda, they don't let little things like "facts" get in the way.

Even though the name was derived from the mythical Jersey Devil, the team's logos and imagery have nothing to do with that. Instead, the team uses the stereotypical horns and pointy tail of the Antichrist. Therefore, even though I think taking any offense to the name would be unwarranted, there is some basis for Christians to be offended by the name and imagery.

David Puddy: "Gotta support the team."

[Lord_Jeff]

Any school with the nickname Crusaders. I don't think that anyone (whether Catholic or not) should be proud to have his or her school associated with one of the most brutal and hateful series of events in history.

Somewhat off topic, as an alumnus of Amherst College, I've always been of two minds about the nickname Lord Jeffs. (I'm speaking from an offensiveness standpoint. It's a truly awful nickname generally, regardless of connotations.) Although it's probably not entirely accurate historically, most people associate Jeffery Amherst with the first recorded use of biological warfare, which is certainly not something to be proud of.

[DrBear]

Detroit Lions could be offensive to those that think using animals as logos is exploiting and demeaning lions.

The Lions haven't been offensive since Barry Sanders retired.

[eRay]

i go to Alfred University in Alfred, NY, and some people have expressed interest in changing our mascot name. It is currently 'Saxons' which i personally like, but i have heard people complain that this group of people known as the saxons actually invaded certain places and raped women and killed children and torured prisoners or something. I am not going to research the name, because frankly I wouldn't find it offensive if it were true, but maybe this is a case of what you are talking about.

Also, I'm sure somebody out there is offended by the Dayton Bombers of the ECHL, and on top of that I am offended by the Greenville Grrrowl of the ECHL, but who isn't?

[TheOldRoman]

I remember on TSN's Off The Record a few years back Ted Nolan said he always liked it when sports teams picked Native Peoples as their mascots- it was a symbol that the team wanted to have represent them. If they thought that people like him were something to rally behind, he took it as a compliment.

i think that is a bit like african americans using the 'n' word to describe themselves - it's sort of enpowering.

cleveland indians - doesn't offend me personally but they should change their name because it is blatantly ignorant. Indians are from India. using the word Indian to describe a native american is borderline racist imo. it's like calling a european person chinese - when they found america they were trying to find a better route to india and thought they had found india and indians so the word stuck. "native indians" is even more dumb and makes no sense. infact "native americans" while a respectful term for the uneducated to use, is actually not correct either, technically they are not native to america, they were here before it was named america by the white man.

so if you want to have a team called the "chinese" with a picture of robin hood, then go ahead, you may as well cheer for the Indians.

other offensive names? not sure that there are too many that i'm aware of anyways. one poster is right saying that any name could technically be offensive - i am an Oilers fan and i hate that Oil is essentially destrying the earth - pollution, wars, destroying ecosystems...but i am not offended by any means.

as far as your report goes - this is a university paper? if so you have an interesting topic and I would definitely start with the obvious ones like the Indians, Braves and Blackhawks...(black cocks? is that not offensive either?)

the mighty ducks is offensive because the movie sucked balls.

Wrong. I have talked with many "Native Americans" over the years, and for the most part they are not offended by the term "Indians". Indians means "people of God", so they find the term fitting.

[hawk36]

Unfortunately, our society has become so terrified of offending anyone/thing that team names are slowing evolving into mediocrity. All names can be offensive to a small percentage of people. It's my hope that common sense preveils and we can continue to use names of substance, even if they do rile some extremists.

[hawk36]

Wrong. I have talked with many "Native Americans" over the years, and for the most part they are not offended by the term "Indians". Indians means "people of God", so they find the term fitting.

Thank you. As a Native American I've been trying to get this word out for years. It would be nice if the general public would acknowledge the majority of us who take pride in teams being called Braves, Chiefs, Indians, etc., rather than the small, minority of us that are offended. Guess it's not 6 o'clock news though.

And, by the way, the Cleveland Indians were named in honor of an early 1900s Native American that starred for the team. I could only wish that I would be honored in such a way.

[leopard88]

Wrong.  I have talked with many "Native Americans" over the years, and for the most part they are not offended by the term "Indians".  Indians means "people of God", so they find the term fitting.

Thank you. As a Native American I've been trying to get this word out for years. It would be nice if the general public would acknowledge the majority of us who take pride in teams being called Braves, Chiefs, Indians, etc., rather than the small, minority of us that are offended. Guess it's not 6 o'clock news though.

And, by the way, the Cleveland Indians were named in honor of an early 1900s Native American that starred for the team. I could only wish that I would be honored in such a way.

Serious question (not meant to be sarcastic or combative): Do you believe a majority of Native Americans feel similarly honored by the name Redskins?

[hawk36]

Serious question (not meant to be sarcastic or combative): Do you believe a majority of Native Americans feel similarly honored by the name Redskins?

Redskins is probably the most borderline name. From what I understand though (I am not a historian), the term comes from the red paint that the tribe wore on their faces when going into battle, not for their actual skin color. I honestly try to give people the benefit of the doubt and thus choose believe this is the origen. The fact is, I see the logo on the Redskin's helmet as one of the more distinguished representations in sports. Much more flattering than the cartoon image mascots that are more commonly used.

Appreciate the honest conversation, thanks.

[Dolphins1972]

I remember during the 95 World Series,Howard Stern said he was pulling for Cleveland to beat Atlanta. The Indians' mascot's (Chief Wahoo) big smile reminded him of Ba Ba Booie's huge choppers.

[winghaz]

There are three high schools here in North Dakota that are worth noting:

Wahpeton High School used to be called the Wops. Had the teams been called the Wahps, there never would have been a problem other than it's a stupid nickname. But since Wops, as spelled that way, is offensive to Italians, it gave the folks in Wahpeton reason to change a stupid nickname.

Then there's Devils Lake High School, which used to be called the Satans. A school board member there had a fit about that nickname and eventually the name was changed to the Firebirds. My own feelings on that is that I don't mind Satans, especially for a town called Devils Lake, but Firebirds is OK, too.

One school -- Dickinson High School -- did not change its nickname, although there was an attempt. The nickname: Midgets. A majority of school board members, at one time, voted to change the nickname, saying it's offensive. That spurred a recall election of the entire school board, and all of those who voted to change the nickname were voted out. So their action never went through. My opinion: Midgets isn't that great of a nickname, anyway, especially since Dickinson is very close to Theodore Roosevelt National Park. The Dickinson Roughriders would have been much better than Dickinson Midgets.

[Mac6674]

I have to agree with previous posts concerning the Redskins, it seems to fall on the wrong side of good taste.

I always thought the Chicago Fire was in poor taste; they named a team after a huge disaster that destroyed the city and killed a couple hundred people and left something like 90000 homeless. I know it's far in the past, but still. the New Orleans Katrinas or the New York 9/11s would not be welcomed, I'm sure.

[STL FANATIC]

Serious question (not meant to be sarcastic or combative):  Do you believe a majority of Native Americans feel similarly honored by the name Redskins?

Redskins is probably the most borderline name. From what I understand though (I am not a historian), the term comes from the red paint that the tribe wore on their faces when going into battle, not for their actual skin color. I honestly try to give people the benefit of the doubt and thus choose believe this is the origen. The fact is, I see the logo on the Redskin's helmet as one of the more distinguished representations in sports. Much more flattering than the cartoon image mascots that are more commonly used.

Appreciate the honest conversation, thanks.

This is what I have read as well. While I've never seen it 100% confirmed, I've never heard anyone throw out the theory (with any legitimance) that the Boston/Washington football team took their name because they felt like showing their superiority over American Indians.

As for the term Indians being wrong, I disagree. Columbus was stupid and thought they were from India and he called them Indians. However, the fact remains that they were called Indians. It wasn't offensive, it was simply the English name give to them. Sure, it created two seperate races of Indians, but that's fine--there is really no problem with that. It CAN be confusing, so I think the term American Indians is the best option. I don't support the term Native Americans, because I myself am native to America, besides the fact that evidence is coming out that their may have been ever earlier humans on this land that many of the tribes we currently think of as native may have killed and conquered their land.

So, American Indians it is.

Oh, and one more thing. Does it piss anybody else off that one of the major arguments by the minority of American Indians is that they are really many seperate tribes and should not be stereotyped as one type of person, yet, when a specific tribe name is being called into question, they all feel they have the right to claim it is offensive no matter what tribe they are from.

[redsfan39]

what about the washington bullets? or the colt'45's? and others like that....

i think there's a minor league baseball team called the canons....

They were named the Potomac Cannons. They are now defunct, but how the hell is that offensive? It's referring to the Revolutionary War.

[Hat Boy]

Then there's Devils Lake High School, which used to be called the Satans. A school board member there had a fit about that nickname and eventually the name was changed to the Firebirds. My own feelings on that is that I don't mind Satans, especially for a town called Devils Lake, but Firebirds is OK, too.

I am sorry to hear that. Satans was such a unique name comapred to devils, demons or the other variants that are out there. I never understood how a person could be offended by the name "Satans" when they live in a town called Devils Lake.

[cbeach40]

I have to agree with previous posts concerning the Redskins, it seems to fall on the wrong side of good taste.

I always thought the Chicago Fire was in poor taste; they named a team after a huge disaster that destroyed the city and killed a couple hundred people and left something like 90000 homeless. I know it's far in the past, but still. the New Orleans Katrinas or the New York 9/11s would not be welcomed, I'm sure.

A similar sort of thing was done with the Atlanta Flames- Atlanta was burned to the ground by Union forces during the Civil War. Calgary was not, as far as I know. I also remember a minor lacrosse team in Barrie, Ontario being named the Barrie Tornado- named for a nasty one back in 1985.

Also, going back to the 1995 World Series, anyone remember that bit on SNL where a Will Farrell character was being interviewed by Norm McDonald about the offensiveness of the teams?

"Greg Maddux- he grow fat on weak National League hitting."

Finally, how many teams have actually bowed to the political pressure and renamed themselves? I can only think of the AAA-baseball Syracuse Chiefs, now the Skychiefs.

[BlueSky]

Re offensive mascots, it's not the use of a certain name in itself necessarily, it's how they're portrayed. Chief Wahoo - clearly offensive. Washington Redskins, Florida State, Atlanta Braves, et al - respectfully portrayed, therefore not offensive.

[kreg13]

QUOTE (kreg13 @ Monday, April 24th, 2006 - 00:53:45)

what about the washington bullets? or the colt'45's? and others like that....

i think there's a minor league baseball team called the canons....

They were named the Potomac Cannons. They are now defunct, but how the hell is that offensive? It's referring to the Revolutionary War.

again......I don't think it's offensive. but there are others that feel that naming a team after a weapon connotates violence i. e. bullets, sabres, blades, etc. and is therefore not "appropriate"

and i think that's just plain silly.