"The fight over mascots seems most polarizing in states where Indians are few in numbers, where invading settlers tried to eradicate not just tradition and culture, but the Indian people themselves.

They succeeded so well that in many places, only the names of the tribes remain. The people are dead, assimilated or forcibly moved from their ancestral lands, their traditions broken, their languages dying or gone.

If their survivors don't want to be used as mascots, it seems easy enough to honor their wishes. It's the least we can do. And if Indian-school teams, such as the one in Santa Fe, choose to be the home of the Braves, that's up to them. The rest of us can -- and should -- find other symbols."

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Indian mascots: Issue won't go away (The Santa Fe New Mexican 5/7)