Lauren Fencl

L.fencl@students.clark.edu

Hollis

November 20th, 2017

Persuasive Speech Outline

Introduction:

Attention Getter: It has been said that an image is worth a thousand words, a concept implying

that a single visual element can replace a multitude of descriptive factors that one image carries

meaning and definition far more adequately than verbal or written description. (More Than a

Word 2017). These are the words of Frank Waln, a Sicangu Lakota musician and Native

American activist who has spoken out against the use of Indigenous imagery as mascots.

Signifigance: The debate over the use of Native American mascots has recently received

national attention thanks to the NFL team, the Washington Redskins. However, this is not a

new issue as Native activist have been fighting against the use of Native American imagery as

mascots for decades due the harmful effects these derogatory team names and images have not

only on American Indian and Alaska Native youth, but everyone exposed to these mascots and

the stereotypes they carry.

Credibility: I have firsthand experience with how these mascots can directly impact Native

youth, their families, and communities. Not only was my high schools mascot the Chieftains,

accompanied by this logo (show logo), my father is Southern Piegan, or Amskapi Pikuni, of the
Blackfoot Confederacy in Southern Alberta and Northern Montana, whos Great Plains Native

culture is depicted in logos like the one used by my high school.

Preview of Main Points: It is important to understand how these mascots affect Native

American youth and others who are exposed to these images. Through my research I have found

a strong causation between these mascots and the negative impact they have on American

Indian/Alaskan Native communities and the non-Native communities exposed to them. I will go

over how these disparaging images contribute to enforced stereotypes, higher suicide rates, lower

education rates, and higher poverty rates in Native communities. A change in these mascots is a

first step that can be taken to addressing some of the issues that Native Americans face every

day, and I will be discussing what can be done not only through activism but at the legislative

level.

Transition: First lets look at these mascots, who they are supposed to represent, and some

of the arguments for keeping Native American mascots.

Body:

1.

a. The State reward for dead Indians has been increased to $200 for every red-skin

sent to Purgatory. This sum is more than the dead bodies of all the Indians east of

the Red River are worth. Words from The Winona Daily Republican September

25th, 1863. Redskin, defined in the dictionary as offensive, dated; A North

American Indian. Often used as a pejorative, a word meaning expressing

contempt and disproval. The word redskin refers to the bloody skins of Native

peoples, proving that they had been killed. It is a dictionary defined racial slur.
 Used outside the context of an NFL team, it would get someone in trouble as it is

deemed derogatory. Sadly, there is only one person that can ultimately change the

name of the Washington Redskins, and that is Dan Snyder, the team owner. He

has made it very clear he does not intend to do so. While Native activists continue

their work against the Redskins, it is important to look at the other Native

American themed mascots too.

b. Braves, Chieftains, Warriors. What image pops into your mind when you hear

these words. Is it something that looks like one of these mascots (image). How

about the peoples that these mascots are supposed to represent, what do they look

like? Is it this (historical image), or this (image of Native people today). Due to

mascots most, people view American indigenous peoples as they existed in the

past. They are unable to view Natives as an equal part of American society.

It has purported that using indigenous peoples as mascots honors them. I am

unsure of how the word relating to the bounty of skin as proof of killing

indigenous peoples is honorable. The issue is not one of political correctness but

about promoting human dignity to those who have been denied it for all too long

in this country Joaquin Gallegos, Jicarilla Apache Nation of Pueblo Santa Ana

(Stegman 2014).

That is one of the most common defenses for the use of Native mascots,

remembrance and honor, however, in the next images I show, there is no honor or

respect for the strife of Native peoples in America.

c. Another common defense is the Whatabouts. What about the Vikings? What

about the Cowboys?, this is a slippery slope. Vikings and Cowboys are not racial
 slurs, they are not representative of a population that has faced discrimination and

historical trauma for centuries. At the same time, Native peoples standing up for

what they believe is right and speaking out against the use of Native American

mascots does not take away from anyone else who may be offended over a

Viking, Cowboy, Padres, or Fighting Irish mascot.

d. The biggest defense to the use of Native mascots is the Annenberg and

Washington Post polls that state 9 out of 10 Native Americans are not offended

by the Redskins team name. They surveyed 504 self-identified Native Americans,

56% of whom did not have tribal affiliations. This is not meaning Natives who are

disenrolled, adoptees, or do not meet various tribal enrollment policies. Dr.

Adrienne Keene states The bottom line for me is this: In my entire life, I have

never met a person, who primarily identities as a Native American, who didnt

have a tribe (Keene 2016). While she recognizes this is a huge generalization I

agree with her. Only 44% of the people polled by the Washington Post had tribal

citizenship. The polls question itself is misleading As a Native American, do you

find that name offensive, or doesnt it bother you? which begs me to ask, who

does this poll seek to serve? Not the Native American activists who have been

fighting against mascots for decades. This poll is not representative of Native

American voices on the mascot issue.

Transition: But no matter the counter arguments people use to defend their continued use

of Native peoples as sports teams and school mascots it cannot be ignored that research

shows these names and mascots establish an unwelcome hostile learning environment for

native students, resulting in lower self-esteem and mental health. Studies also show that
these mascots undermine the education experience of all students, particularly those with

little or no contact with indigenous and American Indian and Alaska Native People

(Stegman 2014).

2. The American Psychological Association has called for the immediate retirement of all

American Indian mascots, symbols, images, and personalities by schools, colleges,

universities, athletic teams, and organizations (APA 2011). Passing a resolution in 2011

calling for the elimination of these stereotypes.

a. Poverty experienced by Native peoples is almost double the national rate at 29%

in 2012 compared to 15.7% (Bureau of the Census, 2012). For Native youth under

the age of 18 the poverty rate is even higher at 36.5% compared to 22.2%

nationally (Bureau of the Census, 2012). Native youth have some of the lowest

graduation rates in the country at only 67% and are the only group with a

declining graduation rate (National Center for Education Statistics, 2014). Suicide

is the second most common cause of death amongst Native youths. 31 of 100,000

American Indian/Alaska Native youth committed suicide in 2010 compared to

12.2 nationally, a rate 2.5 times higher (CDC, 2012).

b. Dr. Michael A. Friedman in work with the Oneida Indian Nation of New York

found that these mascots aggressively market a stereotypical and outdated

caricature of Native Americans, which threaten to perpetuate stereotypes of and

negative attitudes towards Native Americans (Friedman 2013). This is further

shown in Chu Kim-Prietos Effect of Exposure to an American Indian Mascot on

the Tendency to Stereotype a Different Minority Group where they write our

results indicate that even if the intention of the depiction may have been to honor
 and respect, the ramification of exposure to the portrayal is heightened

stereotyping of racial minorities the effects of these mascots have negative

implications not just for American Indians, but for all consumers of the

stereotype (Kim-Prieto 547). Exposure to these mascots in a public setting and

educational setting is harmful to Native populations and non-Native populations.

Accurate representation matters, and Native American mascots and imagery do

not correctly represent Native peoples or their cultures. These mascots should be

removed as they contribute to stereotypes that harm how Native youth view

themselves and how others view Native peoples.

Transition: How do we make these changes happen?

3. Progress has already been made, specifically in public schools. The Center for American

Progress reports that there were once more than 3,000 American Indian and Alaskan

Native mascots and names used in K-12 athletic programs, and more than two thirds of

those have been changed (Stegman 2014). Many states have also acted against Native

American mascots. Minnesota, Nebraska, New York, and Oregon to name a few. In 2012

The Oregon State Board of Education Department banned all Native American team

names, mascots and logos based on how the mascots harm Native students and their

peers. Oregon gave its schools until the Summer of 2017 to make the change, and those

without permission from local tribes have all changed their names.

a. I urge you to write to the Washington State Board of Education to follow in

Oregons footsteps, or at least start small and write to the Vancouver Public

School Board about changing the Columbia River Chieftain mascot (Insert Dr.

Webbs name and school board address).

 b. I also urge you to visit ChangeTheMascot.Org and sign the petition urging Dan

Snyder to change the Washington Redskins mascot.

c. If you have tribal affiliation you can sign Dr. Adrienne Keens list of Native

Americans Against Redskins Mascot here (show link).

d. Lastly, I just encourage everyone to become an ally, to learn more about the

Native cultures of the land you live on, Native American issues, and when you

hear someone defending Native mascots you can share the information I have

shared on how the mascots affect Native youth.

Nitsiniiyitaki, thank you.

 Works Cited

Annenberg Public Policy Center. Most Indians Say Name of Washington Redskins Is

Acceptable While 9 Percent Call It Offensive. Annenberg Public Policy Center of the

University of Pennsylvania. 24, September 2004.

https://www.annenbergpublicpolicycenter.org/most-indians-say-name-of-washington-

redskins-is-acceptable-while-9-percent-call-it-offensive/

"APA Reslution Recommending the Immediate Retirement of American Indian Mascots,

Symbols, Images, and Personalities by Schools, Colleges, Universities, Athletic Teams,

and Organizations." American Psychological Association, June 2011,

www.apa.org/about/policy/mascots.pdf.

Bureau of the Census, Poverty Status in the Past 12 Months by Sex by Age Universe:

Population for whom poverty status is determined: 2008-2010 American Community

Survey 3-Year Estimates.

https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?src=bkmk

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Suicide Facts at a Glance. CDC. 2012.

Chaney, PhD., John, et al. "Do American Indian Mascots = American Indian People? Examining

Implicit Bias Towards American Indian People and American Indian Mascots." The

Journal of the National Center, vol. 18, no. 1, 2011, pp. 42-62. Academic Search Premier,

www.ucdenver.edu/academics/colleges/PublicHealth/research/centers/CAIANH/journal/

Documents/Volume%2018/18(1).pdf.
Friedman, Ph.D., Michael A. "The Harmful Psychological Effects of the Washington Football

Mascot." ChangeTheMascot.org, Oneida Indian Nation, 2013,

www.changethemascot.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/DrFriedmanReport.pdf.

Keene, Adrienne. Natives Against Redsk*ns. Native Appropriations.

http://nativeappropriations.com/nativesagainstredskins

Keene, Adrienne. WaPos new Redsk*ns survey: Faulty data and missing the point. Native

Appropriations. 19, May 2016. http://nativeappropriations.com/2016/05/wapos-new-

redskns-survey.html

Kim-Prieto,Chu, et al. "Effect of Exposure to an American Indian Mascot on the Tendency to

Stereotype a Different Minority Group." Journal of Applied Social Psychology, vol. 40,

no. 3, Mar. 2010, pp. 534-553. ProQuest.

Stegman, Erik, and Victoria Phillips. "Missing the Point: The Real Impact of Native Mascots and

Team Names on American Indian and Alaska Native Youth." AmericanProgress.org,

Center for American Progress, July 2014,

www.americanprogress.org/issues/race/reports/2014/07/22/94214/missing-the-point/.

Steinfeldt, Jesse A., et al. "Racism in the Electronic Age: Role of Online Forums in Expressing

Racial Attitudes About American Indians." Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority

Psychology, vol. 16, no. 3, 2010, pp. 362-371. PsycArticles.

Stetser, Marie C. Public High School Four-Year-On-Time Graduation Rates and Event Dropout

Rates: School Years 2010-2011 and 2011-2012. Washington: National Center for

Education Statistics, 2014.

Woodrow Cox, John, et al. New poll finds 9 in 10 Native Americans arent offended by

Redskins name. The Washington Post. 19, May 2016.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/new-poll-finds-9-in-10-native-americans-arent-

offended-by-redskins-name/2016/05/18/3ea11cfa-161a-11e6-924d-

838753295f9a_story.html?utm_term=.6272b3bdbe0c