Not ready for superbowl mascots

My wife and I usually look forward to the Superbowl. I like watching the game regardless of who is playing. My wife likes the commercials. My wife makes quite a spread and we have fun with it. Our dog, Sunka, even gets a special treat. However, this year I have mixed feelings about it.

Let me start with the Kansas City Chiefs. What is wrong with this picture. Well a lot actually. Their name demeans the signficance of being a chief and makes it seem like anyone could be one which is so far from the truth. You have to earn that title and it takes bravery, wisdom, compassion, leadership skills and so much more. Our chiefs were and are revered among our people. A number of years ago the Kansas City Chiefs had a poster where all the players were wearing a headdress which was one of the most demeaning things they could do. And to top it off it was sanctioned by the local Kansas City Indian Center. This caused a lot of conflict within the Native American community there. You have to be careful as an organization when you lend your support to others and it goes against your principles. And then there is the infamous tomahawk chop jesture that fans make while they are singing the woo hoo war hoop or whatever crazy chant they call it. This just perpetuates that myth that all Native Americans were blood thirsty savages. They would not be doing this to any other ethnic group in America. They do it to us because they can. There will be protesters outside the game to make the public aware of this injustice and rightfully so. And there are some who are speaking out about it. And in case you are wondering yes it is just as bad as the Washington Redskins mascot. They make think they are respecting our people by honoring our culture but in reality they are doing the exact opposite. The resistnace will not stop fighting to change this symbol and we shall overcome!

And now I turn my attention to the 49ers which are the mascot for San Francisco. You might be saying well what is so wrong with celebrating the discovery of gold in California. Well for those who benefited from this new found wealth I am sure it is fine. However for Indigenous people in California the discovery of gold in 1849 was absolutely devastating. Within 20 years more Native Americans died in California than the previous 100 years. And then on top of that they lost their land, their culture and to a large degree a way of life. Since Columbus landed in 1492 gold has been the excuse the colonial powers used to exploit the people and land where Indigenous people lived. For my Tribe, Lakota/Dakota Nation, and many others we lost the Black Hills over gold. A treaty had been signed in 1868 and gold was discovered in 1876. This gave the government their rationale for breaking the treaty and displacing Tribes in areas outside of the Black Hills. In 1968 the court decided on the Sioux Claims settlement which gave our Tribes 17 million which is what they calculated was the value of the gold taken out back in the 1800's. What a joke! We never took the money and it has now accumulated to over 1 billion. The land is still sacred to our people as it is to all the Tribes in California that lost so much.

So on Super Bowl Sunday say a prayer for our ancestors who gave up so much to preserve what we still have and always remember that our people should be treated with the respect and dignity that we deserve. Kansas City Chiefs mascot has to go and the 49ers should honor the adverse impact that the discovery of gold had on our people.

Mitakuye Oyasin (All My Relations)