The New Generation of "Redskins"
Although the issue of Native Americans being used as mascots is not new, recent legislation passed by Governor Jerry Brown has brought the issue back to the surface. This time, the attention is not on the NFL, but on the many public schools across the country still using the derogatory term “Redskins” as a name, mascot, or nickname. With a flick of the pen, Governor Brown has banned the “Redskins” throughout California. This law will outlaw any public school in California from using“Redskins” iconography to represent their school. Those against the removal are claiming this is an issue of over-sensitivity and political correctness and cite the cost of removing this iconography as a major reason for opposing…show more content… He said, “If you’re living in a society that devalues your culture or perpetuates stereotypes, you may be devaluing yourself.” He added, “so we have to preserve those bonds, break stereotypes, I believe that includes our sports teams”
During the Tribal Nations Conference Obama praised Adidas, who has started an initiative that would help the 2,000 high schools with Native American mascots redesign their mascot. Adidas will offer free design resources to schools looking to replace their Native American mascots, nicknames, imagery or symbolism. According to an article published in The Guardian, "Adidas also pledged to provide financial support to ensure the cost of changing is not prohibitive."
On Dec 1, 2014, the California Racial Mascots Act (Assembly Bill No. 30) was introduced by Assemblyman Alejo. On October 11, 2015, California made civil rights history when Governor Jerry Brown signed into law bill AB30, which eliminates the“Redskins” as a mascot from all of the state’s public schools. This will prohibit Californian public schools from using "Redskins" as their team name, mascot, or nickname beginning January 1, 2017. A move that the National Congress of American Indians said should serve as a shining example for the rest of the
