Names Will Never Hurt Me Research Paper

Matt Miller 12/6/12
Topic Research Paper SPM 373

Sticks and Stones May Break My Bones but Names Will Never Hurt Me
(Unless I am Native American)
Introduction
Arguments can be made that Native Americans have been discriminated against since Christopher Columbus navigated into the New World in 1492, and that it has lasted in society and sports up to this day. One very controversial issue in sports has been the use of Native American nicknames and mascots among schools and professional sports teams. Since the 1930’s and 1950’s there has been roughly 2700 schools, and five professional sports teams that have used Native American nicknames, mascots, and logos (Wright, 2007). However, since the 1970’s, around 600 schools
They claim that schools and owners of teams are showing respect by honoring Native Americans through the names. These people want to highlight the courage and integrity of the Native American people (Kraatz, n.d.). For example, Karl Swanson, former vice president of public relations for the Washington Redskins, argued that the term “redskins” symbolized the greatness and strength of a grand people (Emert, 2003). The use of a non-fictional person provides for more of a personal touch for teams. This personalization for teams, if eliminated, would destroy the culture of a school or fan-base (Cummings, 2008). Teams would not intentionally be named after Native Americans if people would hold them in contempt, but rather be used to associate Americans with the spirituality of Native American heritage, while providing widespread coverage of this culture (Wright, 2007). In terms of financial means, proponents have argued that names have been in place for so long with very little successful appeal, so if a change were to occur then it would destroy merchandise sales for the school or team. For many institutions and organizations there would be loss of millions of dollars in trademark changeover or cancellation on merchandise and apparel, while current merchandise would become obsolete (Emert, 2003). Regardless of the
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