Dear Supporters:
Setting aside the Leonard Peltier
matter for a moment, there is a recent development at a local Cincinnati area high
school.
The Issue: In 1937 the
School Board decided to change the name from the bland “Comets” to the Anderson
Redskins.
Much later, the name
provoked controversy for its potential racism and in 1999, apparently after much
debate and emotion on both sides, the School Board decided to keep the name.
However, out of respect for Native American religious beliefs the Board later modified
the school mascot and removed the Peace Pipe and Tomahawk from its logo.
The issue has resurfaced and
on March 19th there was a well-attended School Board meeting. The
matter of the school name was not on the agenda but the Board did allow some
community comment.
I had no desire or intention
to begin the debate; I was there only to support an eighty-year tradition. I
placed my name on the roster believing that I would be one among many given a few
minutes to voice an opinion on the issue to change or not to change the
school’s name. It didn’t go as planned, and I was the first one to broach the
Redskins issue. I had been doing more research during the day and prepared a
brief statement.
Background: There are a few
fundamental facts that need to be understood or at a minimum aired for
community awareness.
There is no doubt where I
stand when it comes to Native American history and rights. Prominent on the
home page of the NPPA website since its inception on April 30, 2000 is the
following:
Correcting
Wrongs of the Past : Anyone who has even a
basic understanding of the history and plight of Native Americans recognizes
their terrible treatment at the hands of the U.S. Government. That history cannot
be altered. Nothing can change the broken promises and treaties and subjugation
of the first peoples to inhabit this continent. (Footnote 1)
Two young people spoke
passionately in support of changing the school’s name. One mentioned a number of
abuses including the infamous Trail of Tears.
There are many fundamental
facts relevant to early North American history and the First Americans. There
is often a misconception that before the arrival of the white Europeans that in
some way the continent was a peaceful place, a Valhalla where the various
tribes lived in harmony with their neighbors. History shows otherwise. Before
the Pilgrims arrived there was ample inter-tribal warfare where some tribes
destroyed or enslaved others. This was no different than what was happening
during this same period, and throughout history, in Europe, Asia and elsewhere
around the world—quite simply the result of human nature.
As heinous as the Trail of
Tears was, it’s also important to remember that the displaced Cherokees brought
with them their own African slaves. (Fn.2)
It is undeniable that American
history is replete with white supremacy. Theodore Roosevelt wrote that Indian “life was but a few degrees less meaningless,
squalid and ferocious than that of the wild beasts who seemed to the White
settlers devils and not men,” and that “Nineteenth-century
democracy needs no more complete vindication for its existence than the fact
that it has kept for the white race the best portions of the new world’s
surface.”
The recent efforts to remove
Confederate monuments are arguably a reaction against those early attitudes and
perceptions. Many monuments were erected in the 1960s as a backlash to the
Civil Rights Movement. But, as we know, many of our early Presidents and
founding fathers were slave owners. Recently some, to the extreme, have even suggested
renaming Washington D.C. Would it be beneficial to call it, for instance, D.C.
Town?
But at what point do we
stop? All the good, bad and ugly that built this great nation is integral to
our collective history.
If one person is offended by
a word that matters to them—a perceived slur—they must be heard, along with all others who offer the same
or differing opinions.
However, and without
fostering a rhetorical premise, there are at least three Native American high schools
in the country that proudly proclaim themselves as Home of the Redskins.*
Would it be appropriate to force the same standard on
those schools and communities that have embraced the term as one of pride, honor,
bravery, and their shared history and heritage?
At the school board meeting
many people on both sides of the issue were wearing orange, the high school’s
color. Some showed support to keep the school name, others also wore buttons
with #wordsmatter. Certainly they do, but the color worn showed that people
were concerned and passionate, regardless of their opinion. Does the connotation
of certain words change with time? Certainly, and in that regard, context also
should matter.
Eight decades ago when the
School Board chose the Redskins name, its meaning and history—and
unquestionably it did have a dual meaning—they apparently chose the one that
represented all those positive traits of Native culture that they wanted to proudly
represent their school. (Fn.3)
(Not altogether ironically,
just the other evening (3/21/18) on the History
Channel was a segment entitled, The Men who Built America/Frontiersmen,
and at one point showed the storied Warrior Chief Tecumseh preparing for battle
against the U.S. Militia by applying red paint to his face [not an uncommon
practice]. That was the final battle he lost as his coalition with the British
collapsed. Our collective American history is very complex.)
The School Board has formed
a Committee that as of the moment is but a mere shadow of the previous one that
contemplated the naming issue. That early Committee was broad and inclusive of
many interests in the community. Half of the current Committee consists of
School Board members that give the appearance that the Board will be making a
recommendation to itself. Perhaps this may be challenged as a procedural issue or
legal matter. The Committee undoubtedly should listen, unbiased, to all
opinions, research the matter thoroughly and honor their mandate for due diligence
and make a recommendation independently to the School Board. The Board will
make the final decision but the entire community needs to be heard.
Please see the 2004 Editorial
Essay, Pilgrimage to Pine Ridge. (Fn.4)
“In the Spirit of Coler and
Williams”
Ed Woods
Footnotes:
2) http://inamerica.blogs.cnn.com/2012/02/25/pain-of-trail-of-tears-shared-by-blacks-as-well-as-native-americans/ (Last accessed 3/21/18)
3) As early as 1769
references to the term Redskin:
* Red Mesa High School,
Arizona; Wellpinit High School (Middle school; Warriors), Washington State;
Kingston High School, Oklahoma.
