November 02, 2011

Justin-Siena mascot = stone idol

A couple of weeks ago I posted about Justin-Siena High School's new Braves mascot. Here's the live version of the Braves logo:



Someone posted this image on Facebook and people quickly tore it apart. Some comments (with minor corrections to the spelling and punctuation):Ahh hell no!!!

OMG! this is horrible....It's hard to believe no one is offended by this....I mean, as a human being.

If it true's that a Cali tribe allowed this I just really wanna know why.

Really I cannot believe them at all, after all the fighting, protesting and everything that the ppl that came before me and spoke up for the ppl and our children. And for a California nation to allow such a mascot to represent California Native ppl is like a slap in the face.

A debut around Halloween...looks appropriate.

That mascot looks stupid who in the hell approved this...and and is that a yellowhammer with red and white diamonds wth looks like a goddam cake decoration....I don't think a real dancer would wear red white and blue paint....Do these people know how sacred the yellowhammer and paint meaning is to the acha....This is horrific and so disrespectful....I would compare this to lining up all the jine kids and making them sing Ten Lil Indians then banging their little heads against rocks!!! Sickkkkkkk

Wappo did, I first saw this on a Facebook post. It said they were being honored with a mascot. It is their people and it is their choice. Personally, I do not approve or like the precedence it sets for the rest of us, but I respect the Wappo tribe and its right to allow it.

I dnt respect the tribe if they did it bkuz it is a slap in the face to all those ppl who fought for us to not be sterotyped as a mascot.

You know I go to school almost everyday and half the time I am debating with ppl about what Native ppls beliefs are, from religion to culture and why I take things so personal when it comes to mascots such as this one. And you know what I dnt get it why would the Wappo ppl do it why? (I think it is very shameful for the Wappo ppl to allow it.) I mean didn't they realize what effect it would have on the rest of the California Natives, did they not think of that and what do they even hold sacred anymore? Cuz obviously showing off and putting on a show.

It's called MONEY...DOLLARS....this Wappo tribe is trying to gain favor with the politicians in the Napa area so as to open a casino and resort for their tribal members....Not hatin on them for wanting to pay their people some of that masan skrilla....But to sell out on the sacred traditions is a no-no that will come back on them....They really don't know their history do they....Capitan Vallejo really exploited them and used their greed against them and a Catholic people are doing the same thing today....WOW what a shame....All those kids are gonna grow up thinking that having a mascot such as a spiritual dancer is a cool thing. I'm curious about this Galbadon or whatever his name is...if he's ever set foot in a round house or ever went to a bighead dance and stomped...or ever whittled a yellowhammer with his own hands...or does he even know a song from his people or any people. I'm interested in knowing cuz this is a disgrace to him and his Elders.
Comment:  A few obvious problems with this mascot.

  • The "flesh-colored" body suit. It looks like a cross between a naked savage and a tawny bear.

  • The blank-faced visage with no eyes. It looks inhuman, like a stone idol from some Mesoamerican culture.

  • The exaggerated war paint and arrowhead pendant, both suggesting violence.

  • The mascot's flexing his muscles to show what a thuggish brute he is.

  • Here you see the problem with Indian mascots in a nutshell. It doesn't matter how "respectful" the logo's image was. The reality is the message it's sending: that Indians are primitive people of the past.

    This loincloth-wearing lout only confirms the point. How many people would see this mascot and conclude, "Wappo Indians can be lawyers, doctors, or US presidents"? And how many would conclude, "Wappo Indians were savages"? I'd love to take a poll and verify the numbers, but the answer is self-evident.

    A Wappo representative said his people were peaceful, but never lost a fight. That's nice, but it's not the message you get from the "Braves" name and warrior mascot. Indeed, the message is the opposite. Namely, that the Wappo people were so crude and uncivilized they couldn't do anything but fight. That they were nothing but animated statues devoid of thought or feeling.

    For more on the subject, see Chief Osceola Is "Respectful"? and Chief Zee's Successor?

    3 comments:

    dmarks said...

    Your comments on this really pull the rug out from under that guy who ranted at you for supposedly supporting this mascot design.

    Anonymous said...

    Stupid questions:

    Shorts and a loincloth? I mean, the mascot's skin is felt, anyway, so no indecency issues. (Also, a lot of swimwear is more revealing than a loincloth.) In short, it's redundant. And not accurate; Eskimos wore pants as we think of them, but they didn't wear loincloths. Kind of like modern Indians. LOL

    Flexing? Flexing (and bodybuilding in general) is essentially gay fanservice, nothing more, move along. Except, once again, the mascot's skin is felt.

    dmarks said...

    Felt by whom?