I thought I might pass along an ethics issue that divided my class more than usual. I already have a strong opinion on the subject, but I'd like to hear what other people think first: Should Indian mascots be legal or not?
Sport teams, schools, and merchandise have been using Indian names and theme's as the subjects, brands, and mascots of their schools. All of them appear to be attempting to honor the Indians when they portray them and create icons of them, but Indians seem to almost unanimously take offense.
According to my teacher, the two sides are essentially arguing this:
People are proud to call themselves by their Indian sports/school name.
(Mascots, are an intended source of pride, not of mechanism of negative social commentary.
Indians feel misrepresented and discriminated against through mascots, because of butchered religious symbols (like sacred eagle feathers on a headdress), being portrayed into stereotypes, and being exclusively picked. After all, it is much less common for other races of people is being targeted for these forms of iconography and (unintended) but inaccurate cultural reference. We do not have sports teams called "The Blacks" or "The Jews", or "The Whites", or "The Pilgrims", et cetera.
*When I say "Indian" and am referring to Native Americans, not people from India. It's just shorter to type.