Patriarchy and the ‘Fighting Sioux’: a gendered look at racial college sports nicknames

Multicultural Training Intervention to Address American Indian Stereotypes

“…Students are provided with examples of other groups that could have teams appropriate their name and likeness for use in sports (e.g., Martinsville Faggots , Bloomington Slant Eyes , Indiana Wetbacks , Purdue Jews ) in an effort to highlight the connection between the actual experience of American Indians and what it might be like for other marginalized groups in society to be exposed to this practice. Many authors (e.g., Russel, 2003; Sigelman, 1998; Williams, 2006) have commented on the paradoxical nature of society's acceptance of Native‐themed mascots, particularly in comparison with portrayals of other minority groups that would be considered socially unacceptable (for instance, no team would be named the New York Negroes ). To elicit relevant outgroup perspectives that highlight this paradox, this training intervention provides narrative (and visual) descriptions of fictional matchups between teams with human mascots.…”

“…This vignette represents an element of a training intervention designed by the first author to address stereotypes of American Indians in society. The use of American Indians and corresponding imagery for sports mascots, nicknames, and logos is a common societal practice that perpetuates stereotypes of American Indians (Baca, 2004; Davis, 2002; Russel, 2003; Staurowsky, 1999; Williams, 2006). However, because stereotypical portrayals of American Indians are omnipresent and hegemonically woven into the fabric of society, the harmful nature of this practice seems to exist outside of the consciousness of mainstream American society (Merskin, 2001; Steinfeldt et al, 2010).…”

“…that perpetuates stereotypes of American Indians (Baca, 2004;Davis, 2002;Russel, 2003;Staurowsky, 1999;Williams, 2006). However, because stereotypical portrayals of American Indians are omnipresent and hegemonically woven into the fabric of society, the harmful nature of this practice seems to exist outside of the consciousness of mainstream American society (Merskin, 2001;.…”

Where’s the Honor? Attitudes Toward the “Fighting Sioux” Nickname and Logo

“…King and Springwood (2000) argue that sports reinforce stereotypes about Native Americans as fans try to "play Indian" with the misperceived "fighting spirit" of Native peoples in the combat of sport. The visceral violence of some sports is linked to a particularly masculine expression of school pride, which in turn can provoke a combative relationship toward any critic of the Fighting Sioux nickname-particularly for fans of the most violent sports like football and hockey (Williams, 2006). Sigelman (1998) found that football fans were significantly less likely to want the Washington Redskins nickname changed than nonfans.…”

“…In 1999, an outspoken Native American nickname-change activist was emailed a death threat for his opposition to the nickname (Brownstein, 2001). These events and others have followed patriarchal patterns, involving "father knows best" attitudes derived from an "old boy's club" of decision makers, objectification akin to the physical objectification of women, and denigration of progressive and radical women critics (Williams, 2006).…”