A new Blue Line Comics Cartoon

[Rob the Badger 0]

This might cause a bit of a stir, but I think it needs to be addressed. The idea that we still have professional sports teams using native American characters as their logo is wrong. What other nationality gets this kind of treatment, besides the Celtics, (Which isn't even pronounced correctly.) It is the year 2007 and we still have an NFL team named the "Red Skins"... I think that is just messed up.

You can get fired from your gig on radio for calling a female basketball player a 'nappie headed ho'... but it's okay to have a team called the "Red Skins?" It's okay to have Hitahoma and cheif wahoo? It's okay to have a cartoon native with crossed tomahawks on your jerseys? It just doesn't seem right.

Edited November 8, 2007 by Rob the Badger

[esteef 2,679]

O.K. I'll go first. I think the only one of those that could be construed as demeaning is the Redskins, just because of the name. They had a similar dilemma here in San Diego for the SDSU Aztecs. The mascot used to run out onto the field with a flaming spear and throw it and pound his chest and stuff. Some Native Americans on campus bitched about it and got the school to no longer use the Indian guy as the official logo. He still goes out onto the field but he wears the traditional Aztec garb as well as he lost all the ridiculous flaming spears and antics. The Indian groups actually like the noteriety of the team names, as long as it's done in a tasteful manner.

Personally, I think people today just seem to pick and choose when they want to be offended by stuff. Double standards certainly exist. Everybody seems to be hypersensitive to everything these days.

my two cents,

esteef

[Hito 0]

FYI, both pronounciations of celtic (with an s or k sound at the beginning) are correct. You say tomato, I say tomato.... you know, that doesn't work as well written out

[HomeNugget 2]

if its wrong for one group its wrong for all... except the irish.

[Opie 308]

The Seminole tribes in Florida stood up for the university of South Florida when the State government wanted to abolish the use of the Seminole as a mascot. I think it should be up to the people of the area that are of that decent.

I agree with esteef only the Redskins is degrading. I can see how some would find Indian as opposed to native American offensive but Black Hawks and Fighting Souix are actually considered by some in the tribes to be compliments.

[betterREDthandead 58]

How about the Minnesota Vikings? You should see some of the stuff their fans dress in. What about the Michigan State Spartans or the USC Trojans? I guess there's nothing wrong with a little stereotyping as long as it's white people.

[Skiing - Puck 0]

I get so sick of all of this politically correct bullsh*t. The only on of those logos that could even be construed as demeaning is the one used by the Cleveland Indians because it is demeening in how it is represented. Iguess that while we are throwing out all representations of indian culture there are several other teams that should ditch their names because it could be deemed offencive such as the New York Yankees (could offend people in the north), Dallas Cowboys (could offend ranch hands), Pittsburgh Steelers (might insult steel workers), Michigan State Spartans (this could offend Greeks), or the University of Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns (could offend south Louisana citizens of Acadian decent) or Notre Dame Fighting Irish (could offend the Irish).

Oh by the way there was a South African soccer team in the early 90's called the Mpumalanga Dangerous Darkies and a town in central Illinois not far from Peoria, suposedly named after the Chinese capitol of Beijing (also known as Peking) . Its high school teams were the Chinks until 1981.

[Gizmo 21]

I can concede that names like "Redskins", "Savages", etc. and cartoonish mascots like "Chief Wahoo" may be offensive and should not be used, but I reject the notion that ANY use of a tribal or cultural name is automatically out-of-bounds.

Being a person born in Indiana... should I be offended that the teams of one of the state universities are called "The Hoosiers"? Why's the NCAA bend out of shape over "The Fighting Sioux" but not "The Fighting Irish"?

[Winged Scooter 0]

How about the Minnesota Vikings? You should see some of the stuff their fans dress in. What about the Michigan State Spartans or the USC Trojans? I guess there's nothing wrong with a little stereotyping as long as it's white people.

Great POINT! I am Norwegian, does that mean I should go running around , protesting filing law suits because the NFL allows the Minnesota franchise to portray my ancestors as drinking, stealing rapists??? I think this age of PC-ness has gotten WAY out of control.

[HomeNugget 2]

Great POINT! I am Norwegian, does that mean I should go running around , protesting filing law suits because the NFL allows the Minnesota franchise to portray my ancestors as drinking, stealing rapists??? I think this age of PC-ness has gotten WAY out of control.

i agree 100% people need to lighten up.

the name Vikings was even chosen because of all the people of Norwegian decent in minnesota. no one out here is offended by it.

[Chelios57 31]

Lighten up.

If anything it's a testament of respect. Would you disagree if they were called the "Detroit Detroiters" with a picture of a guy working hard in a car plant?!?! With your logic names like "Canadiens" or "Canucks" could be deemed offensive.

Your name is offensive to Badgers...

Worst. Comic. Ever.

[Rob the Badger 0]

if its wrong for one group its wrong for all... except the irish.

I get that a lot. My last name is O'Neil. Like my Granda used to say... "I'm 100% Scot-Irish". Funny guy, he was.

[Chelios57 31]

I think the Michigan Huron's would be pretty bad ass too.

[Rob the Badger 0]

I can concede that names like "Redskins", "Savages", etc. and cartoonish mascots like "Chief Wahoo" may be offensive and should not be used, but I reject the notion that ANY use of a tribal or cultural name is automatically out-of-bounds.

That's the point. These logos are in poor taste. It's easy for someone not in the native community to say 'lighten up' it's just a mascot or a logo. But if someone were to try to start a new expansion NBA team Brooklyn and call them the New York Negroes, there would be riots. If it's wrong to do it with other races, it's wrong to do it with Natives too.

[Kp-Wings 3]

Rob, usually your comics are pretty entertaining, but you really dropped the ball with this.

I don't understand why everything has to be so politically correct. If anything, like previously mentioned, it's a sign of respect that Native American figures are being used as logos for professional sports franchises. I don't see what's so degrading about that. There are plenty of other names, also previously mentioned, that could be just as offensive to certain groups of people, but their not offended by it, because those people are level headed enough to understand.

I would have preferred that you just stick to making fun of the St. Louis Blues or something, and not turn your comics into political gambits. It's your comic series, so you can do what you want, but it's not a very good subject in my opinion.

[DEVILSWATERBOY 10]

I am half Indian and of Norsman decent and I am not offended one bit by this this is a land of many credes and it is about damm time that people quit winning and wanting to be politcly correct. so lets playball wahoo and drop the puck blacklhawks and kick that ball redskins oh yes and the vikings put on your horned helmet. next thing you know they will want to stop saying the pledge of alegence in school or take the 10 commandments out of the court house this is all BS get over it there are alot worse things in this world to worry about :!:

[Gizmo 21]

That's the point. These logos are in poor taste. It's easy for someone not in the native community to say 'lighten up' it's just a mascot or a logo. But if someone were to try to start a new expansion NBA team Brooklyn and call them the New York Negroes, there would be riots. If it's wrong to do it with other races, it's wrong to do it with Natives too.

I think your analogy is flawed... The term "*****" is out of favor in our society (as is the example of "Chinamen"). I don't think the team "New York African-Americans" would be deemed to be automatically offensive unless it was used with a cartoonish logo. Take the Central Michigan U. as an example. They are "The Chippewa" When rumblings were made that would have forced the team to change their name, the local tribe leadership weighed in and said they were "honored" that the university took their name and didn't have any problems with the way that they used the name.

As for the logos shown above, I would only classify the "Chief Wahoo" one as belonging into the "cartoomish" classification. I don't think the Hawks or Redskins one is in the same league. The only "issue" I conceed with the later one is the name "Redskins". I agree that no modern team on US soil called the "Darkies" would be allowed to fly.

Edited November 8, 2007 by Gizmo

[Rob the Badger 0]

Lighten up.

If anything it's a testament of respect. Would you disagree if they were called the "Detroit Detroiters" with a picture of a guy working hard in a car plant?!?! With your logic names like "Canadiens" or "Canucks" could be deemed offensive.

Your name is offensive to Badgers...

Worst. Comic. Ever.

Yes, I am sure that there are many Native Americans who think that being called a "Red Skin" is just incredibly flattering. There is a big difference between being called a Canadien, a product of Canada, and having your tribe turned into a cartoon character like Cheif Wahoo. We have an American team in the AHL called the Americans, they're from America. Detroiters are a class of people from multiple ethnic and social backgrounds. There is a difference.

Oh, and if you don't like the cartoons you don't have to read them. I always label the threads that I start with a comic. It's not like you were tricked into opening it. If you think that the Blue Line is the worst cartoon ever, you've never stumbled across the "Family Circus".

[Gizmo 21]

We have an American team in the AHL called the Americans, they're from America.

Actually, only about five of them are "Americans". So what's the difference between the AHL team made up of people mostly from Canada and Europe, but located in a place known for having a lot of Americans calling themselves "Americans" vs. a CMU football team made up of few players with Native American ancestry but located in a place known for having a Chippewa tribe calling themselves "Chippewa"?

If you think that the Blue Line is the worst cartoon ever, you've never stumbled across the "Family Circus".

Actually, I think that honor falls to "Nancy"!!! Edited November 8, 2007 by Gizmo

[Rob the Badger 0]

I don't know if posting this MP3 will work, but it was sent to me at the website. I hadn't heard of this song before, but it does flow in the same vein as the cartoon.

Own the Washington Red Skins

Edited November 8, 2007 by Rob the Badger

[vangvace 12]

Most recent pro league team with an offensive name... Houston 1836, now the Houston Dynamo. 2006 MLS.

A 2002 poll commissioned by Sports Illustrated found that 75% of those Native Americans surveyed had no objection to the Redskins name.

What no mention of the Atlanta Braves with a weapon as their logo? The must be promoting violence while being racist right?

[Rob the Badger 0]

Back in the day, when Rochester first got its team, they were affiliated with the Canadiens. But rather than name them the Rochester Canadiens, they decided to call them the Rochester Americans. It made more sense, their arena was built on our dirt.

[Gizmo 21]

Or just use the "C" with the tomahawks as their primary logo if they insist on keeping with the Native theme. It isn't difficult to not be an ugly American. Native tribes have spoken up about this time and time again. It's not about being politically correct, it's about not being racist.

If you know anything about the American Indian Movement... the tomahawks wouldn't be anymore acceptable that the current logo.

It's also interesting how we've expanded our definition of "racist". Racism used to mean a belief that one race or culture was superior to another. I fail to see how Chicago's use of a profile of a rather life-like Native American (though not quite a life-like as NDU's) along with the simple name "Blackhawks" is tantamount to belittlement.

While it's true that the feelings of the most vocal are clear, It's not clear as to just how upset Native Americans, as a whole, are over the issue... and if their objections flow against all uses.

Edited November 8, 2007 by Gizmo

[Rob the Badger 0]

Most recent pro league team with an offensive name... Houston 1836, now the Houston Dynamo. 2006 MLS.

A 2002 poll commissioned by Sports Illustrated found that 75% of those Native Americans surveyed had no objection to the Redskins name.

What no mention of the Atlanta Braves with a weapon as their logo? The must be promoting violence while being racist right?

The Braves used to have a screaming Native warrior as their logo and changed it. And if 75% of Native Americans said that they were okay with it then 25% didn't. I don't see how some people think that it's okay to make cartoony logos of Natives when it would never fly with Hispanics, Asians, or other races. You can get fired from a life long radio career for calling a basketball player a nappie headed ho, but the Red Skins logo is just fine? In our nation's capital no less.

[theman19 47]

as someone of native american decent, People saying "lighten up, or get over it" then being the same group of guys who haunt the racial topics in the political forum, ventomously apposed to anything racist, is beyond hypocritcal.

It's not okay

The blackhawks are acceptable, the name isn't offensive and the mascot is a proud symbol.

The redskins have an offensive name, but they've made an effort to downplay the native american influence of there name in recent years.

The cleveland indians are a joke, a complete, hurtful, racists Joke.

And it's perfectly okay to be that, as there's not enough Native Americans in enough power to do anything about it.

Imagine this,...the Cleveland *****'s,....and there mascot is a white guy in "black face" eatting watermellon and fried chicken,.....that's offenseive right?

So's a big, goofy, gap toothed guy, in Red as crimson face paint, with a ridicoulous feather hanging from his head.