By Ed Rice, Special to the Bangor Daily News Maine could be the first state in the U.S. to eradicate school use of Native American nicknames and mascots. But our effort to make that a reality has encountered two obstacles: 1. Maine’s four tribes have, in writing, asked Skowhegan Area High School, the sole school in the entire state employing a Native American nickname and mascot to, respectfully, please end its use of the name. The school board has refused. 2. Maine’s highest education … [Read more...]
Skowhegan has a chance to break shackles of acceptable racism
By Ed Rice, Special to the Bangor Daily News Well-publicized across the state, the Skowhegan-area school board, by a narrow 11-9 vote in early May, rejected an appeal by Maine’s four Native American tribes to end the use of their inappropriate nickname and mascot. For the time being, those 11 school board members have thumbed their noses at more than 30 other Maine communities and public schools that have ended such usage over the past decade. Skowhegan is the only school in Maine not to … [Read more...]
It’s time for Cleveland Indians to drop racist logo, not shift blame
By Ed Rice, Special to the Bangor Daily News Our campaign to end the use of Native American nicknames and mascots by Maine’s public schools has reached the last community, Skowhegan, still clinging to the tenets protected by acceptable institutional racism. But more formidable examples of mascot racism remain. One is the Cleveland Indians baseball team and its controversial, racist caricature, Chief Wahoo. In August 2014, I visited Cleveland and spoke in honor of Louis Sockalexis at a … [Read more...]
Skowhegan High School stands in Maine’s way: ending Native American mascot use
By Ed Rice, Special to the Bangor Daily News When all around her members of Congress stood frightened and mute in the face of Joseph McCarthy’s Communist fear-mongering, Margaret Chase Smith of Skowhegan stood, alone, in opposition and spoke what she knew to be right, what she knew to be the truth. Today, we need that spirit in Skowhegan once again. As we move through the 2014-15 academic year, Skowhegan Area High School is now the only school left in Maine using a Native American nickname … [Read more...]
Mr. Smith Goes to Cleveland to Kill Chief Wahoo
Ed Rice 9/23/14 (Indian Country Today) As my plane winged its way to Cleveland last week, to give a library talk in praise of Maine Penobscot Indian Louis Sockalexis and against the Cleveland Indians’ continuing use of Chief Wahoo, I began imagining myself as being something like the Jimmy Stewart character in “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.” Upon my return trip to Bangor, after thinking about a solitary walk around Progressive Field that left me infuriated by the Cleveland Indians’s … [Read more...]
Mainer confronts Cleveland Indians execs in quest to honor Penobscot Indian player
By Ed Rice, Special to the Bangor Daily News As my plane winged its way to Cleveland last week, on my way to give a library talk in praise of Maine Penobscot Indian Louis Sockalexis and against the Cleveland Indians’ continuing use of Chief Wahoo, I began imagining myself as being something like the Jimmy Stewart character in “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.” Upon my return trip to Bangor — after thinking about a solitary walk around Progressive Field that left me infuriated by the Cleveland … [Read more...]
Recognize Sockalexis by ditching Wahoo and changing course on Ohio team names and mascots: Ed Rice
By Guest Columnist/cleveland.com on June 18, 2014 at 7:22 AM Some day, probably under an entirely new ownership and new organizational leadership, I believe Cleveland's baseball team will reverse course and demonstrate, like most of the rest of the country is currently doing with mascot and nickname changes, that there are far, far better ways to show respect to our Native Americans and their culture. At that time, Clevelanders may demand a more attractive portrait of Louis Sockalexis at … [Read more...]
Time for Skowhegan, Nokomis to answer: What makes your school so special?
By Ed Rice, Special to the Bangor Daily News Nearly 30 schools in Maine have stopped using Native American nicknames and symbols, mostly over the past decade. Standing all alone are Nokomis Regional High School of Newport, Skowhegan Area High School and southern Maine’s Wells High School in a race for infamy: Who will be the last to stop this insidious practice in Maine? A handful of education officials are, quite simply, arrogantly demonstrating to their students a poor model for showing … [Read more...]
Cleveland Indians must end offensive use of Chief Wahoo — or seek blessing of Penobscot Nation
By Ed Rice, Special to the Bangor Daily News While it’s admirable — and I’m completely sarcastic here — that the Cleveland Indians organization sought feedback from its fan base on the controversial issue of its racist mascot, Chief Wahoo, and has started 2014 by implementing a partial end to its use, wouldn’t it finally be considerate of the team to seek the blessing of the Penobscot Nation for even part-time use? This is comparable to a group deciding, “Hey, it’s OK to use the swastika … [Read more...]
The Cleveland Indians need to learn same lesson Ohio schoolchildren have learned: Ed Rice
By Guest Columnist/cleveland.com on October 18, 2013 at 4:39 PM ORONO, MAINE -- The Cleveland Indians organization has never had any real understanding -- or appreciation -- of what it has in the historical figure of Louis Sockalexis, a man who almost certainly broke professional baseball’s color barrier, a man who was definitively the first-known American Indian to play, a man who went through the exact same experience Jackie Robinson endured 50 years after him but never gets any comparable … [Read more...]