By Jon Ouellette, Special to the Bangor Daily News Journalist Ed Rice of Orono has been an advocate for Native Americans’ rights in sports since the 1970s. He has written commentaries, given speeches and penned a book titled “Baseball’s First Indian, Louis Sockalexis: Penobscot Legend, Cleveland Indian,” where he argues that Sockalexis deserves recognition as baseball’s first Native American ball player. Rice, 65, has spoken twice at the Hall’s baseball writers’ symposium in the last … [Read more...]
Will Baseball HOF finally start honoring the game’s native pioneers?
9/7/13 (Indian Country Today) The stated mission of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, in Cooperstown, New York, is “to preserve history, honor excellence and connect generations.” It fails on all three counts where Native American players and history are concerned. For even as its exhibition walls feature portraits of pioneer players and time-lines for Afro- American players, Hispanic players and women players, no such recognition and celebration exists for the American Indian … [Read more...]
Hall should address real issues
“Forget Pete Rose and Shoeless Joe Jackson, put Louis Sockalexis in the Baseball Hall of Fame!” To hear that truly great master of being disingenuous and champion of using “Straw Man” fallacies — using logic fallacies I’ve cautioned my students not to use on their peers in my oral communications classes for a decade — you’d think that is my position and the Penobscot Nation position, according to Bradford Horn, National Baseball Hall of Fame public relations director. Of course, if you had … [Read more...]
At baseball hall of fame, Mainer goes to bat for legend Sockalexis
This story was published on June 11, 2005 on Page A1 in all editions of the Bangor Daily News COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. – Ed Rice made his case for Indian Island legend Louis Sockalexis on Friday afternoon, asking for recognition and respect for the baseball player during a talk at the National Baseball Hall of Fame. The Orono, Maine, resident and author of the Sockalexis biography “Baseball’s First Indian – Louis Sockalexis: Penobscot Legend, Cleveland Indian” appeared at the final session of the … [Read more...]
Recognizing Louis Sockalexis; local author making pitch for Penobscot Indian to Baseball Hall of Fame
This story was published on June 04, 2005 on Page D1 in all editions of the Bangor Daily News OLD TOWN – A little more than 100 years after Louis Sockalexis stepped on to a baseball diamond as a Major League Baseball player in Cleveland, Nate Lonko stood in the infield of Old Town High’s baseball field, posing for a photo with a bat over his shoulder. Like Sockalexis, Lonko is pretty successful at what he does as the starting shortstop. They both lived right around Old Town – Sockalexis … [Read more...]
Baseball Hall needs to acknowledge Sockalexis
This story was published on April 05, 2004 on Page C1 in all editions of the Bangor Daily News (Editor’s note: In this final installment of three columns, focused on disrespect to Native Americans in the world of sports and, particularly, to a Maine Indian legend, Louis Sockalexis, author Ed Rice argues his case why Louis Sockalexis deserves to have the title “First Indian” to play major league baseball restored to him. He also implores the Baseball Hall of Fame to recognize, at long last, … [Read more...]