Top Ten Sports Teams with the Most Unacceptable Names and Logos
I have nothing against any of these sports teams. I have no biases while making this list, and some of these teams are great, with amazing players. But their names and/or logos are unacceptable, usually with some sort of discriminatory logo or name using First Nations in a crude manner, and they need to be changed. I did not include the Washington Football Team, formerly known as the "Washington Redskins", because they were forced to change their discriminatory name and logo, as well as other teams who have fixed up their problems. So, let's list the top ten. Enjoy!
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball as a member club of the American League Central division. Okay, what the heck? I think it's pretty obvious how terrible and disgusting this name and logo are. Cleveland "Indians"? It doesn't respectfully mean real "Indians," meaning people who reside in India, but First Nations, who were wrongfully called "Indians." It is now unacceptable to call them that, but I guess Cleveland doesn't think that applies to them.
That picture is so horrible, making First Nations look like complete idiots. I know I said that I don't have anything against these teams, but this is really pushing it.
The Chicago Blackhawks are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League. They have won six Stanley Cup championships since their founding in 1926. The logo is almost an exact mirror image of the Washington football team's. The lone defense is that the team is named not after Native Americans but the World War One-era U.S. Army division "The Black Hawks," which in turn took its name from a Sauk Indian chief.
The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball franchise based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The franchise competes in Major League Baseball as a member of the National League East division. They play their home games at SunTrust Park. The team had a mascot called Chief Noc-A-Homa, a really stupid idiot "imitating" an Indigenous person, and he used to reside in a teepee in the bleachers, which is another pretty bad thing. There was the terrible "Tomahawk Chop" incident, which was making fun of a person with Indigenous heritage, which just adds to it all.
Also, the logo!
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League as a member club of the league's American Football Conference West division. There are a few glaringly obvious problems with this. The logo contains an arrowhead, which is yet another crude reference to Indigenous people. They play at Arrowhead Stadium, which is just as bad, and their horse is named "Warpaint," which is another reference to First Nations and their culture.
After a 2005 NCAA ruling banning Native American mascots in postseason play, several Division I schools ditched everything Native American except their names, including this one. The term "braves" derives from Native American scouts who served alongside U.S. cavalry troops. A respectful tribute? Not really.
It's still "a one-dimensional representation of people" that plays right into a stereotype, even if it is ostensibly a positive one, says an expert on the situation, Professor Blackhawk.
Representing San Diego State University in California, the Aztecs compete in the Mountain West Conference. Notable for their football and men's basketball programs, they have received several accolades. Their colors are red and black. This, unlike the disgusting Cleveland Indians, has made some changes to fix their racist stuff. I'll give them that. Mascot Zuma has retired, at the very least. But otherwise, this is still a pretty bad name and logo.
The team retains an arrowhead in the logo, referencing First Nations. The fight song mentions Montezuma, which is not okay, and other traditions reference the Mexican tribes, as well as the name "Aztecs."
I don't know where the William and Mary came from, but the two feathers are an obvious reference to Indigenous people, as well as the "Tribe" in the name.
The College of William and Mary was named after Queen Mary II and her husband King William III. Interesting choice for this institution to be named The Tribe. - SteelCity99
The sports teams of the University of Utah, the Utes are part of the NCAA Division I and compete in the Pac-12 Conference. The school has particularly strong skiing and gymnastics programs and has won multiple national championships in these disciplines. Their team colors are red and white. The team is named after the Native American tribe indigenous to their region, and though they have received those tribes' official permission, that doesn't mean we shouldn't care. Plus, the feathers on the Utes logo are pretty bad as well.
It doesn't rank too high only due to the fact that they had permission, but I still think it's unacceptable.
The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football franchise based in Seattle, Washington. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League as a member club of the league's National Football Conference West division. The Seahawks "respectfully" got their logo from the totems of First Nations, as well as the name "Seahawks." I don't think they asked permission to use that name, respectfully or not, so it definitely is still a fairly unacceptable name.
But the logo is pretty cool, so I can't hate them too much.
Representing Indiana University, the Indiana Hoosiers are based in Bloomington, Indiana. They are members of the Big Ten Conference and have a storied history in men's basketball. The team colors are cream and crimson, and their mascot is Hoosier Pride. It hasn't been proven that this name is racist, but it's pretty obvious that it is, evidence or not. The Illini were a group of First Nations tribes, but it is not clear whether the name originated as a reference to Native Americans. It's likely because what else would it be named after?
They even had a mascot called Chief Illiniwek, clearly a crude imitation of a First Nations chief, which has to be enough evidence, though they dropped him in 2007.
Representing Florida State University, the Seminoles participate in NCAA Division I sports as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference. Known for strong football and baseball programs, they have multiple national titles in these sports. Garnet and gold are their team colors.
The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association, as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division.