![]() When asked directly, participants, regardless of the mascot they saw, reported no differences in how warlike they thought Native Americans were.īut when participants completed an indirect – or implicit – stereotype measure, those who’d viewed the Native American mascot were more likely to associate warlike qualities with Native Americans. We then measured how strongly all participants associated Native Americans with “warlike,” a stereotype leveraged by many sports teams that use Native mascots (“Braves,” “Warriors”). In our lab, we showed participants an unfamiliar mascot some were shown a Native American image, while others were shown an image of an animal. Perhaps more disturbingly, people aren’t even aware that this subtle reinforcement is taking place. ![]() Our research has shown that incidental exposure to Native American sports mascots can reinforce stereotypes in people. The “sticks and stones” argument suggested by the poll makes complete sense from a self-preservation standpoint after all, Native Americans have had to persevere through worse offenses than mascots.īut that stance ignores the dangerous possibility that such ethnic names and imagery affect how other people view Native Americans – possibly in subtle and damaging ways. Since then, defenders of the name – including team owner Daniel Snyder – have considered the controversy over and done with. Perhaps it’s due to the Washington Post survey from last spring finding that 90 percent of the Native Americans polled weren’t offended by the Redskins name. 12, there was hardly a mention of the name controversy that has, in recent years, elicited boycotts, lawsuits and protests. But as the Redskins kicked off their season on Sept. Others have argued that these mascots are harmless if anything, they symbolize reverence and respect, while honoring the history of Native Americans.Īt the epicenter of the debate have been the Washington Redskins, a football team worth nearly US$3 billion. For years, many have said that sports teams with Native American mascots – the Cleveland Indians, Chicago Blackhawks and Florida State Seminoles, to name a few – perpetuate stereotypes against Native people.
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