In the Journal Tribune’s March 4, front-page story regarding the use of an Indian head mascot by Wells High School, an unfortunate headline and some inaccurate wording in the article itself suggests a statewide campaign to eliminate racially insensitive Native American nicknames and mascots includes asking Wells “to drop ”˜Warriors’ nickname.”
The nickname, in this instance, is not the problem.
Wells, along with Nokomis High School of Newport and Skowhegan Regional High School, is now vying for a dubious title: Last school in Maine to stop using a Native American mascot.
Over the past decade, at least 28 Maine schools ”“ from Arundel to Fort Kent and Sanford to Wiscasset ”“ have ended this practice. Now, this lonely trio continues to resist.
How ironic is it that a school with Wells’ extraordinary credits should be shooting itself in the foot with this totally unnecessary misstep? National publications, like U.S. News and World Report and Newsweek Magazine, have ranked Wells High School as one of the top high schools in the country and, indeed, it ranked number one in the State of Maine for the highest four-year graduation rate, at 99 percent for 2012.
So, one can only surmise that with so many very intelligent students and an obviously talented faculty and staff, there must be any number of them embarrassed and disgusted by the continuing inaction of Principal Jim Daly, Student Activities Director Jack Molloy, Superintendent Ellen Schneider and the school board for continuing the offense of using an Indian head icon with their nickname.
Not so, alleged Schneider in the Journal Tribune article: “We don’t have a mascot,” she is quoted as saying, adding that the school emphasizes the letter “W” instead. However, she acknowledged that the school still has an American Indian head on the school’s gym floor. Further, the school continues to use that Indian head on its website and continues the practice of advertising inappropriate apparel and gear featuring that mascot.
Frankly, Wells High School (and Nokomis, too) could quite easily drop the use of the icon and move rather seamlessly to a generic use of the term “Warrior.” An easy fix, if ever there was one. It’s what then-Fort Kent Community High School Principal Tim Doak did; it’s what the administration at Southern Aroostook High School did; and it’s what schools all across the country have done.
Understand this, Wells education administrators: It does not matter how much of a majority (if, indeed, a majority exists) of voices in your communities you can presently claim support your decision to persist.
The mere fact that there is any kind of minority dissent is enough to end the practice. Something as innocuous as a mascot, as trivial as a sports symbol, should never provide a platform for showing disrespect to a culture and for being offensive to anyone at all.
My connection to all this comes about from unsuccessfully tilting at the windmill that is the Cleveland Indians’ racist mascot, Chief Wahoo, and my unwillingness to accept that the subject of my book “Baseball’s First Indian: Louis Sockalexis,” the inspiration for the Cleveland team’s nickname, is shown the least bit of respect or honor through this vile caricature.
Teaming with John Dieffenbacher-Krall, executive director of the Maine Indian Tribal State Commission, we set up a symposium for May of 2010 at the Bangor Public Library, to focus on the issue of mascots statewide. Ultimately, the symposium led to representatives of MITSC leading successful campaigns in Wiscasset and Sanford.
Robert Eurich’s wonderfully informative and frequently updated American Indian Sports Team Mascots website, at www.aistm.org, notes that, today, Maine stands with Oregon as a state that could possibly be “first in the nation” to eradicate all such mascots.
Nicknames and mascots are such a ridiculous topic. Of course, there are far more important issues relating to our Native Americans; however, I would argue, when we can’t even show them the most basic form of respect, how can we expect to tackle the weightier, costlier issues? A basic show of respect costs absolutely nothing.
So, students at Wells itself ”“ or athletic opponents of Wells ”“ now is the time to teach your elders something. Perhaps, led by those members of your school’s civil rights teams, your school could be the one to stand up to the misguided tyranny of a handful of bull-headed adults.
How about boycotting a sporting event with Wells? Just imagine the headlines. Yes, it’s time to use the tactics of civil disobedience to stand up to uncivil school doctrine.
The media, too, is necessary: We need to see the administrators of Wells asked and asked again why they continue to resist when so many other schools have made the change. How can they ”“ especially Jack Molloy ”“ be allowed to continue to utter their mantra of “we’re proud to honor them” when they know so many Native American and other concerned voices are heard, daily, to condemn it?
— Journalist, author and college instructor Ed Rice of Orono can be contacted via his website, www.sockalexis.info.
Comments are not available on this story.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
