Sports

Dump the ‘Redskins’ Movement Presses Ahead

Published

9 years ago

January 6, 2015

A group protests the Washington Redskins name across from Levi’s Stadium before an NFL football game between the Redskins and the San Francisco 49ers in Santa Clara, Calif., Nov. 23.

by Askia Muhammad
Special to the NNPA from The Final Call

WASHINGTON (FinalCall.com) – Hundreds of Native American protestors and their supporters staged a rally Dec. 28, outside the Landover, Md. Stadium where home games are played by the Washington NFL franchise which they insist uses a racial slur—Redskins—as its nickname.

Similar, even larger protests have been held over the last two seasons from California, to Texas, Arizona, and to a massive rally of thousands in Minnesota in November this year.

The event was intended to: “Protest the disparaging racist name of the Washington football team,” radio host Jay Winter Nightwolf told his listeners two days before the rally. The name he said is “a racial slur with a long bloody past.”

That bloody past amounted to state-sponsored genocide, Native people insist, and it’s all tied to the team name, which they say is not an honorific, but an insult.

“When those boats landed here in 1492,” Clyde Bellecourt, a member of the Anishinabe Ojibwe Nation and co-founder of American Indian Movement (AIM) told Mr. Nightwolf on his radio program on Washington’s WPFW-FM, “there’s estimates that anywhere from 15 million to 26 million native people resided here in Western Hemisphere, most of them in the borders of what’s called the United States of America.

“And at the closure of the last major massacre at Wounded Knee in 1890, on Christmas Eve, when ‘peace on earth, goodwill toward men’ was going on, they mowed mostly old people women and children, close to 300 of our unarmed people died at Wounded Knee, and the last census taken around that time there’s only 248,000 to 300,000 Native people left here in America. We know well what has happened to them. It was perfectly legal at that time to kill an Indian. It was still on the books until the early (20th) Century,” Mr. Bellecourt said.

Native protests began in Washington in 1991, leading up to the 500th anniversary year of the arrival of Christopher Columbus in the Western Hemisphere. Dozens of Native people picketed every home game the team played then at federally-owned RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C. Angry fans often spit on and poured beer on the protestors.

At the same time a group led by Native attorney Suzan Shown Harjo filed a complaint, challenging the team’s trademark before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Appeals Board, which agreed seven years later, revoking the team’s exclusive license to use its name and logo, because the name is a dictionary-defined racial slur.

Team owner Dan Snyder appealed and the decision was overturned on a legal technicality in 2005. In 2007 a younger group of Indian plaintiffs filed another challenge before the Patent Board, which again, in 2014, revoked the team’s trademark. That decision has also been appealed in federal court.

Since that 1992 protest campaign, the team’s achievements on the field have gone from bad to worse. After winning the Super Bowl that year, the team has had only five seasons out of 22, when they won more games than they lost. Some superstitious observers attribute that record to a “curse” placed on the team by Indians over its racist name in 1992. During the last seven years the team has won only 32 games, while losing 64, finishing last in its division six times.

The reason native people are so adamant about this name ahead of all the sports team names which objectify Indians as team mascots, is because the “redskin” was used to prove that an Indian had been murdered, in order to collect a bounty, protestors point out. “Native people had to be eliminated, annihilated,” Mr. Bellecourt said. In order to collect the reward and prove someone had killed an Indian, at first they had to bring in a skull. Skulls he said were brought in by the wagonloads until church women in then Western states—particularly in Minnesota—protested the brutality and the provision was changed to require only a scalp.

“Which meant you could (then) kill women and children,” Mr. Bellecourt continued. “That’s where the word ‘redskin’ comes from.” That, he said, ushered in the genocide against Native people. “Dan Snyder, who is Jewish, should know something about genocide.”

“This is not just about the ‘R-word,’” Simon, another guest on Mr. Nightwolf’s program explained. “If you look at the Kansas City Chiefs, if you look at the Cleveland Indians and Chief Wahoo, people show up in the stands wearing red-face. And they don’t associate that with racism. They just say it’s their sports culture, and that’s what matters to them.

“The reason that the Redskins (team is) facing us with this full national rage, (is because) Washington D.C. is the nation’s capital, and the message that it sends, that a Native American is a mascot, a dehumanized individual. That’s a strong message that we send everywhere. People are going to follow suit with that.”

In its 22 years of active campaigning, the movement to eliminate native team mascots has been successful, according to Mr. Bellecourt. In 1992 the count was more than 12,000 teams across America with Native Americans as mascots. Universities and high schools have gotten rid of the names and the slurs. Now he said there are 2,000 teams which still use native mascots.

“The reason we picked the Washington football team (is) because it’s the most horrific name in sports history,” Mr. Bellecourt said. “If we get them to change the others will change automatically—Chief Wahoo (Cleveland Indians MLB), the ‘Tomahawk Chop’ (Atlanta Braves MLB),” the Chicago Blackhawks (NHL), Golden State Warriors (NBA).

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Up Next

Caldwell Calls for Improved Use of Technology in Officiating

Don't Miss

Coaching Rundown: Everybody Loves Todd Bowles

Oakland Post

Click to comment

Community

Rajah Caruth: Young Trailblazer of NASCAR

Imagine you’re only 22 years old and already making a name for yourself in NASCAR, one of the most thrilling sports in the US. That is the life of Rajah Kirby Caruth, an American professional stock car racing driver.

Published

1 week ago

May 4, 2024

Oakland Post

Rajah Kirby Caruth, an American professional stock car racing driver. (File Photo)

By Tamara Shiloh

Born June 11, 2002, in Washington, DC, he was drawn to the sport as a child after seeing the Disney Pixar film “Cars.”

Caruth dreamed of tooling around the track like the main character in “Cars,” Lightning McQueen. His enthusiasm grew when his parents surprised him with a trip to the NASCAR Cup Series race at Richmond Raceway when he was 12.

In 2018, while keeping busy with school, sports and a summer job, Caruth and his family held fundraisers so that he could buy an iRacing simulator. Then, at age 16, he traded a real driver’s license to race virtually in the eNASCAR Ignite Series, which led to him being recruited by the NASCAR Drive for Diversity Program.

His first big opportunity came in 2019 when he competed in a “Legends” car at Charlotte Motor Speedway in the Bojangles’ Southern Shootout and recorded two top-third in the semi-pro points.

People began to recognize Caruth’s talents. In 2020, he stepped up to the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series and became the first African American to win at Greenville-Pickens Speedway in a late model race. The next year, he won at Tri-County Motor Speedway and picked up his fourth overall late model victory.

Then, he became the first person of color to win at the South Carolina track.

In 2021, Caruth announced he would compete full-time in the ARCA Menards Series East for Rev Racing, where he finished third in the standings, including a series of top-five finishes. He made his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut on a bigger stage as well.

Then, in 2022, thing really took off. A new chapter found Caruth at NASCAR’s unofficial Triple A league with GMS Racing, where he drives full-time for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, with a sponsorship from The Wendell Scott Foundation. After a few setbacks, he broke into the top 10 several times, finishing at a career-high 6th at Darlington Raceway.

Fast-forward to 2024, and Caruth’s took the third major step in his career. He is now driving full-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series for Spire Motorsports and has been making the news for putting on stellar performances. Oh, and he won at Las Vegas: his first career victory.

From an impressionable young racing fan to a professional NASCAR driver, Caruth is charting a new path, creating history, and inspiring people to always remember that if you have the talent, the drive, and most of all, the heart, anything can be achieved.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Community

Salesian Coach Knew Angel Jackson Could Play in WNBA

Back in 2019, Salesian Girls Basketball Head Coach Stephen Pezzola made a bold prediction about one of his players, Angel Jackson. “If she keeps putting in the work like she did for us, she could be in the WNBA,” the coach said. That turned out to be very true. Last month, the Las Vegas Aces selected Jackson with the 36th overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft. She is the second player from an Historically Black College or University, or HCBU, to be selected in the draft in 20 years.

Published

1 week ago

May 4, 2024

Oakland Post

Angel Jackson. Photo courtesy of Jackston State.

The Richmond Standard

Back in 2019, Salesian Girls Basketball Head Coach Stephen Pezzola made a bold prediction about one of his players, Angel Jackson.

“If she keeps putting in the work like she did for us, she could be in the WNBA,” the coach said.

That turned out to be very true. Last month, the Las Vegas Aces selected Jackson with the 36th overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft. She is the second player from an Historically Black College or University, or HCBU, to be selected in the draft in 20 years.

Jackson’s success came as little surprise to Pezzola, who last year led the Pride to their 8th North Coast Section championship since he took over the program in 2008-2009. In 2019, Pezzola commended Jackson as “a very coachable kid” from the time she arrived at Salesian.

Tomekia Reed, her coach at Jackson State, shared similar sentiments, noting Jackson worked “very hard” to reach this moment.

“She came into our program doing great things and never looked back,” Reed told the Clarion Ledger. “She has trusted our leadership as we were able to develop her into an amazing player. I have watched her improve tremendously over the years.”

The 6’-6” Jackson played three seasons at the University of Southern California before transferring to Jackson State. She was ranked 10th in the NCAA in blocked shots and averaged 10 points per game in her final college season.

She finished her collegiate career with 1,047 points and was twice named Southwestern Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year.

As the 36th pick, Jackson was the final pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. In a television interview, Jackson said she didn’t expect to be picked, and called the moment “surreal.”

“It made me feel so appreciative that HBCU is getting back on the map again,” she said.

All she could do in that moment was cry.

“I called my mom immediately, and she started crying,” Jackson said. “It was the best moment you can feel as a young lady.”

There’s no stopping Jackson now. “The sky is the limit,” she said.

Her high school coach agrees.

“I knew that Angel could do it,” Coach Pezzola told the Richmond Standard this week. “We are so proud of Angel and what she has accomplished. It was an honor and joy to coach Angel at Salesian.”

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Community

Oakland WNBA Player to be Inducted Into Hall of Fame

The Multi-Ethnic Sports Hall of Fame (MESHOF) announced that it will induct Dr. Alexis Gray-Lawson, a former WNBA player and Oakland Technical High School graduate at its inaugural Curt Flood Platinum Award Ceremony in February. Gray-Lawson’s Platinum Award is part of the Hall of Fame’s 24th Annual Bay Area induction and award ceremony, where four other retired professional athletes will be honored.

Published

3 weeks ago

April 20, 2024

Oakland Post

Photo Courtesy of Alexis Gray Lawson.

By Post staff

The Multi-Ethnic Sports Hall of Fame (MESHOF) announced that it will induct Dr. Alexis Gray-Lawson, a former WNBA player and Oakland Technical High School graduate at its inaugural Curt Flood Platinum Award Ceremony in February.

Gray-Lawson’s Platinum Award is part of the Hall of Fame’s 24th Annual Bay Area induction and award ceremony, where four other retired professional athletes will be honored.

The banquet and ceremony will be held from 5:45 to 10 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 24, at the George P. Scotlan Convention Center at Oakland’s Marriott Civic Center Hotel.

“I am truly honored to receive this incredible nomination,” said Dr. Alexis Gray-Lawson, who, along with college teammate Devanei Hampton, lead Oakland Tech to its second consecutive state title in 2005. “It took a village to raise me and get me here, and I truly am excited to continue the legacy.”

Gray-Lawson, a “second team” Parade All-American and an All-State honoree, as a senior in ’05, was chosen for the California Interscholastic Federation sportsmanship award. She only lost one game throughout her four-year career in high school. Her jersey was retired at Oakland Tech and placed in the National High School Hall of Fame as a four-time All-City recipient, averaging 17.2 points per game during her career.

Gray-Lawson received scholarships in volleyball, softball, and basketball before deciding to travel up College Avenue to the University of California, Berkeley. There, she played in more basketball games (143) than any other player in Golden Bears’ history. She finished her career as the Bears all-time 3-point leader (211), and she is ranked third in scoring with 1,982 points.

An All-Pac 10 and honorable mention All-American in 2010, Gray-Lawson also was the top player at 5’8” or under for the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award. Later that year, she was a third-round pick of the Washington Mystics in 2010 and played with the Phoenix Mercury of the Women’s National Basketball Association in 2011 and 2012. She also played professionally overseas in Turkey and Israel.

Other inductees are Clifford Ray (Basketball); Lee Lacy (Baseball); Spencer Haywood (Basketball); and Mohinder Singh Gil (Track & Field).

Organizers say the event promises to be a “historic and celebratory evening,” and iconic personalities from across the professional sports industry and its various disciplines will attend.

The no-host cocktail hour begins at 5:45 p.m.; dinner at 6:45 p.m.; and the ceremony at 7:45 p.m. All times are prompt. General tickets are $250.00; Seniors (65 and older) $150.00, and students $50. This includes dinner and the ceremony. Tables of 10 are available as well, and early purchase is recommended.

MESHOF is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization dedicated to honoring athletes from all corners of the globe who have made significant contributions to the world of sports and broadening the public’s understanding of the contributions people of color have made to professional sports; and to provide educational life skills and mentorship opportunities for deserving youth. Proceeds will help maintain the City of Oakland’s Curt Flood Field, Oakland Parks & Recreation, and MESHOF’s after school and mental health initiatives.

Tickets can be purchased online at www.multiethnicsportshof.com. For additional information, please contact: Arif Khatlib @ afrosportshall@aol.com or India Alston @ india@beamcreativehouse.com