Visiting activist Amanda Blackhorse, famous for her battle against the Washington NFL team says it’s not just about mascots anymore.

Native American mascot issues reach Oklahoma
By Shaida Tabrizi, Reporter
Cheyenne & Arapaho Tribal Tribune

A rose by any other name would smell just as sweet, but would a football team by another name fill as many seats?

Activist Amanda Blackhorse has spent years in the fight to change the name and mascot of the Washington NFL team specifically in the court case Blackhorse, et.al. v. Pro-Football. She recently made the trip to Oklahoma to host a panel discussion about Native American stereotypes and the Not Your Mascot movement as part of the University of Central Oklahoma’s (UCO) "Passport to Native America" program.

The case to change the name and mascot of the Washington NFL team has appeared in court three times, beginning in 1999, and so far all verdicts have upheld the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board’s (TTAB) decision to cancel the team’s trademark registration. After the most recent decision to cancel the trademark on July 8, 2015, the team is appealing once again.

Debates on the name change has reached 2016 presidential campaigns as well, with Republican runners Donald Trump and Jeb Bush giving public support for the team to keep their name. In a recent interview with the New York Times, Trump called it a positive moniker and the change “unnecessary political correctness” and both candidates claim that most Native Americans don’t find it offensive.

The majority opinion at the panel discussion in the dim theater of UCO was completely opposite of the two politicians. Other activists joined Blackhorse at the talk, including Merry Buchanan, Jacob Tsotigh, Courtney Tsotigh and Star Yellowfish. Their discussion ranged over the Not Your Mascot movement in Washington, D.C. as well as its recent appearance in Oklahoma with the changing of Oklahoma City Capitol Hill High School’s mascot from the R------s to the Red Wolves.

Yellowfish serves as the Indian education director at Oklahoma City public schools and was instrumental in Capitol Hill’s mascot change. She described the struggle to teach people that the word was offensive, not an honor like many had asserted it was.

The University of Central Oklahoma presented a panel discussion on the commercial use of Indian imagery and stereotypes led by Native American activists. From left: Amanda Blackhorse, Mary Buchanan, Jacob Tsotigh, Courtney Tsotigh and Starr Yellowfish.

“I had to explain to the kids that one of the big arguments is ‘Well, we feel like it’s a term that we are proud of and that we are honoring.’” Yellowfish said. “They used that a lot and I had to explain to them, whether or not that word, you think it’s honoring someone or not, do you want to have a mascot where that is it’s history? Do you want to have a mascot that in the dictionary or Wikipedia or Webster, whatever, it says the term is offensive? Is that who you are, Capitol Hill High School? Are you those types of students?’”

Panelists agreed that mascot and team names don’t have to be classified as a racial slur to be considered offensive by Native Americans, due to the negative speech and behavior common to the games of schools like the Kansas City Chiefs or the Arizona Cardinals. Blackhorse told the story of attempting to hold a peaceful protest at a game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Washington R------s.

“I’ve seen firsthand the culture of these games and how detrimental they are to Native people,” Blackhorse said. “And just by being there peacefully protesting and holding a sign, we had so many derogatory things hurled at us, beers hurled at us and people saying the most disgusting things you can say to a person. What shocked me the most was that it was socially acceptable to do that.”

Despite efforts by activists to convince the nation that using Native American mascots and imagery is offensive, there is continued controversy even within tribal communities.

“Our own people say there are more urgent problems. ‘We have unemployment. We have alcoholism. We have housing problems, we have other issues,’” Jacob Tsostigh said. He then went on to answer such arguments vehemently, “This is an issue that can be written with a stroke of a pen. That’s all it takes, is someone conscious enough to do the right thing. And it can be changed.”

According to the panelists, the issue is not solely about mascots. It transcends into other areas of cultural misappropriation.

“It’s not just about sports mascots anymore, it’s not just about a name,” Blackhorse said. “I think it’s a time where we have been given a platform, or we have taken a platform as indigenous people to say we will no longer be mascoted. We will no longer be treated with disrespect. We are the ones to say how we want to be represented. We want to be the ones to say however we want to be shown in the public, in the national media. That’s our decision.”

For more stories, visit the Cheyenne & Arapaho Tribal Tribune online and follow along on Twitter

Examples of cultural misappropriation mentioned at the talk included the wearing of headdresses by pop stars, Victoria’s Secret models and locally by Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin’s daughter Christina. And with Halloween approaching, the discussion included the popularity of dressing as Pocahontas or generalized versions of Native Americans.

“We’ve been trying to address the different types of costumes that do not support who we are as Native people. That’s just a mockery and a really cheap one,” Courtney Tsotigh said.

UCO hosted the ‘Passport to Native America’ program as a month-long educational celebration of Indian culture, encouraging students to come to each event and ask questions. The panelists also encouraged those in the audience to question deep-seated beliefs. Though many in the audience were mainly eager to share their personal experiences with Native American stereotypes, two questions seemed to light a fire under the discussion and answers became slightly heated.

One student asked what an appropriate way to honor Native American tribes would be, and though they said it was a common question the panelists agreed that they would rather for people not to even try.

“If you have to honor someone find another group to honor,” Jacob Tsotigh said. “We’ll do without that honor if that’s the way you’re going to honor us. Because it doesn’t add to the contemporary presence we have as Native people. We view mascots as animalistic in turn, so it dehumanizes us. We don’t need that honor.”

Yellowfish backed up Tsotigh’s statement, saying that her students at Capitol Hill High School asked the same thing.

“You have to be given certain rights of privileges to honor someone else,” Yellowfish said. “There are a lot of different ways for Natives to honor other Natives, but really as an Indian person, there’s only certain people that can do that. And definitely not a corporation or an NFL team or something like that.”

Another student asked whether it would be disrespectful for a person with Native American heritage to do certain things like dress up for Halloween in an Indian costume, get a tribal tattoo or wear Indian-inspired apparel. The answers began first with a correction to her wording, telling her that the only way to refer to Native American clothing is as "regalia" never as a "costume." Courtney Tsotigh then gave advice on when to wear anything associated with tribal culture.

“I would say it’s disrespectful to wear it for Halloween, it’s disrespectful to wear it to any sort of themed fraternity or sorority party. Anytime it’s not meant to be worn,” Tsotigh said. “When it’s meant to be worn you’ll know when it’s meant to be worn, you’ll be taught that.”

A consensus was reached that there is no way to dress as a certain group of people without causing offense, Halloweeners should stick to occupations, Buchanan said.

Then a discussion of the commercial aspect of cultural features specific to only certain tribes, think dreamcatchers, began as questions about whether even buying turquoise jewelry is offensive or considered misappropriation. Blackhorse calmly listened as a few panelists argued this point, and then summed it up with an explanation that research is necessary to avoid causing offense.

“We have to remember where all of this is coming from. All of these images are coming from a place that says Native American people are all the same, and we all act the same, and we are all this stereotyped Hollywood Indian. That is what America is the most in love with, fascinated with. They love this stuff. Cultural appropriation of Native people is a lucrative business,” Blackhorse said. “And that’s the problem there, that it’s our culture. It belongs to us. And we want control over how we want to display it.”

As part of her visit to Oklahoma, Blackhorse made a short trip to Concho, where she gave a short speech about her life as an activist and was presented with a token of appreciation for her efforts by the Cheyenne & Arapaho tribes.

Since the nearby El Reno High School’s mascot is the Indians and their logo is of a Native American chief wearing a headdress, Blackhorse was asked whether she believed they should be included in the Not Your Mascot movement. She was surprised, but answered with the example of Capitol Hill High School’s mascot change.

“I think everyone survived there, there were no casualties,” Blackhorse said. “They make it seem so horrible, like ‘why are you doing this to us?!’ Yet everyone gets over it.”

Blackhorse ended her talk with some encouragement to Native youth.

“First and foremost, you have to use your voice as a Native person. We come from great nations. We are the most resilient group of people in North America because we survived genocide and our ancestors survived,” Blackhorse said. “”We need to make our ancestors proud and speak up for ourselves and speak up for our children.”