I was an assistant sports editor at the Star Tribune in the mid-1990s when the newspaper adopted a policy of not using most “Indian” nicknames. It was a controversial decision in the newsroom and one that was frequently mocked and ridiculed outside of the Star Tribune. Most of us who created the policy are no longer at the newspaper or working in the sports department, and it was rescinded a few years back by the previous editor.

Even though Cleveland, Atlanta and Washington’s NFL teams still are what they are, the policy was a success.

It made people think about how the imagery was being used. Yeah, it would have been cool if Ted Turner or Jack Kent Cooke had an epiphany and changed nicknames. But that didn’t happen. Nor would I expect Travis Hafner to call a press conference and announce that, owing to his North Dakota roots, he could no longer play for a team named the “Indians” and, as soon as contractually possible, would sign a lifetime pact with the Twins.

What did happen was this: Because of discussions that started in the 1980s, high schools and colleges realized the folly of naming their teams after something they weren’t. Southwest High became the Lakers, Burnsville High became the Blaze. There are  examples all over the country. Many of the inane and insulting caricatures that remain have been minimized in their impact. White guys no longer pretend to be Chief Illiniwek at the University of Illinois.

The recent death of Indian activist Vernon Bellecourt made me think again about the policy we adopted, and withstanding the barbs of those who thought it was an exercise in political correctness rather than a decision based on decency. Vernon and his brother Clyde protested during the Twins-Atlanta World Series in 1991, and Vernon was twice arrested in Cleveland for protesting the “Chief Wahoo” caricature.

These days, teams that have kept these nicknames can no longer say with a straight face that they’re “honoring” Indians because so many have refused to accept the honor. Now those nicknames are simply silly — and hardly a reason not to root for a team.

This entry was posted on Monday, October 15th, 2007 at 1:47 pm and is filed under Thoughts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.