According to the NCAA record book, the Stanford Cardinal defeated the Dartmouth Big Green in the 1942 college basketball championship game.
That’s revisionist history.
As a matter of fact it was the Stanford Indians who won that game. Not only that, the losers were the Dartmouth Indians.
In 1942 and many years before and after Native American connotations were common among college nicknames. The map was dotted with Indians, Redmen and Redskins, not to mention one school that called its teams the “Brown Indians.”
In 1970 some Native American students at Dartmouth objected to the moniker and the school’s administration agreed and directed that a new nickname be adopted. One by one the others took similar steps. Stanford was one of the last ones to change, but it became The Cardinal in 1981.
Major League Baseball teams weren’t so swift to act. It had two teams with Native American nicknames – the Cleveland Indians and the Atlanta Braves – and both of them stubbornly clung to their names. They were equally stubborn about maintaining their images and trademarks, even if some people found them offensive and unflattering.
For the Indians that included the cartoonish “Chief Wahoo” logo on their caps and elsewhere. The Braves logo featured a warlike creature with a scowl. Their uniforms displayed tomahawks. At home games the stadium organist would play a “war dance” chant while their patrons joined in and executed the “chop.”
All of this seemed to reinforced images of a savage, cruel, aggressive and unintelligent people, which is the way Native Americans were usually depicted in movies and even in grade school history textbooks. Human rights groups voiced their objections but until recently the teams ignored them.
Only after a failed lawsuit in 2016 that had threatened to derail the 2016 American League Championship Series did the Indians decide to retire Chief Wahoo. Two years later, after a complaint from a Native American player, the Braves agreed to cease the war dance theme and no longer encouraged the chop.
But the names remained. Until last week.
On Friday, the Cleveland club announced that this will be their 107th and final year as the Indians. Beginning next year they will be known as the Cleveland Guardians.
The action led to the predictable reaction. Civil Rights groups hailed the move and congratulated the club. Traditionalists accused the team of a weak-kneed sellout to activists. The sheriff of one Ohio county asserted that tradition had been stamped out by a vocal minority that prevailed over a silent majority. He didn’t just voice that opinion as a fan or as a citizen. He expressed in an official newsletter published by his department – presumably at taxpayer expense.
In all the turmoil no one took time to examine the new name. Cleveland’s leading tourist attraction is the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame so couldn’t the team be called the Rockers? Cleveland is the largest port on Lake Erie, so how about the Sailors? Or, why not the Spiders, which was the name of the city’s National League team in the 19th Century?
But the Guardians? Where’d that come from?
In fact, it comes from the Hope Memorial Bridge, a mile-long span that crosses the Cuyahoga River near Progressive Field. The bridge is named in honor of comedian Bob Hope and features four sculptures that depict the progress of transportation. The architect of the sculptures called the bridge the “Guardian of Traffic.”
Honest. I couldn’t make that up. That’s the basis for calling the team the Guardians. I suppose headline writers will soon call them the G’s.
The Boston Braves adopted their nickname in 1912, which was three years before Cleveland became the Indians. They kept the name when they shifted to Milwaukee in 1953 and to Atlanta in 1966. In Milwaukee a tepee appeared beyond the outfield wall and a Native American emerged and did a dance every time the team scored. The tradition continued in Atlanta where the dancer was given the name of Chief Noc-A-Homa. That tradition was halted in 1986.
Still, the name remains. The Braves management insist they are proud depict the Native Americans who once considered Georgia their home, even though the origins of the name came from Tammany Hall in New York and had absolutely nothing to do with Georgia. They emphasize the fact that they make donations to Native American causes and seek to educate the public about the true history of the Cherokees.
But they still wear uniforms with tomahawks on the front. They still face organized and formidable opposition. A recent petition calling for a name change had thousands of signatures. After Cleveland’s announcement the pressure increased on Atlanta but the club’s chairman said “unequivocally” the name will not change.
Really?
Didn’t the Cleveland Indians make a similar assertion a few years ago? And how about the football team that used to be called the Washington Redskins? Remember them?
Public pressure has a way to taking the “un” out of unequivocal.
One suggestion is that the Braves honor their late star, Hammerin’ Hank Aaron, and change their name to the Hammers.
I like that idea. As the Hammers the Atlanta team could still continue its charitable work in the Native American community. But it could replace those God-awful tomahawks with hammers. No one could possibly object to that unless they happen to be nails.
Well, maybe that’s not quite right.
I don’t think Ohio has a monopoly on grouchy sheriffs. Surely one or two Georgia lawmen would have a field day denouncing the change?
A FEW STATISTICS (Wednesday’s games not included): Orioles center fielder Cedric Mullins has batted .431 and hit 10 homers in the 34 games his team has won. In the other 65 games he has hit ,255 with seven homers…Whit Merrifield of the Royals not only leads the majors in stolen bases (25) but is second in sacrifice flies (9)…The Brewers are 19-6 against NL West teams. They haven’t played the Giants yet but they have winning records against each of the other four teams…Juan Soto of the Nationals has hit seven homers in 17 games since the All-Star break…The Padres have 90 stolen bases which is 17 more than any other club…Dodgers catcher Will Smith has gunned down 18 would-be base stealers but has allowed 52 successful attempts. Both figures are major league highs…Indians pitchers Aaron Civale and Shane Bieber have combined to post a 17-6 record with a 3.30 ERA. The rest of the Cleveland staff is 32-43 with a 4.82 ERA. Alas, Civale and Bieber are both on the injured list…The Royals have played only two extra-inning games…Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. of the Blue Jays is batting .398 with runners in scoring position…The White Sox are 39-13 against teams with losing records. Against clubs that are .500 or better they are 21-28…Aaron Nola of the Phillies has a 3.18 ERA at home. On the road it is 5.52…The Yankees have started nine players in center field and seven at first base…The Marlins have been charged with 71 errors, the most in the majors. Fifteen have been committed by rookie infielder Jazz Chisholm who has made nine miscues at second base and six at shortstop…Shohei Ohtani of the Angels has 62 extra base hits, which is eight more than any other player.
Former Hall of Fame voter Jay Dunn has written baseball for The Trentonian for 53 years. Contact him at jaydunn8@aol.com
