Cleveland: Redskins controversy revives Wahoo debate

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CLEVELAND -- Is it time for the owners of the Cleveland Indians to retire Chief Wahoo as one of the team's symbols?

The debate is being revived in light of the nationwide controversy about the Washington Redskins nickname.  Even the President has weighed in as part of the debate over whether the NFL team should change it because some find it insensitive and racially offensive.

Bob Costas gave the Chief a  mention in his halftime commentary during the Sunday Night Football game when he called the Redskins' name "an insult, a slur."

"Names like Blackhawks, Seminoles and Chippewas, while potentially problematic, can still be okay provided the symbols are appropriately respectful. Which is where the Cleveland Indians, with the combination of their name and Chief Wahoo logo, have sometimes run into trouble," he said.

He did not specifically call on the team to get rid of the mascot.

Plain Dealer columnist Mark Naymik wrote a Sunday column urging the Indians to dump the Chief.

Native Americans and other groups have called on the team to change the logo.  But their protests have died down in recent years.

The Indians nickname is derived from Louis Francis Alexis, a Penobscot Indian who played for the Cleveland baseball team. He was the first native American to play Major League Baseball and be recognized for his heritage.

The team adopted the Indians name in 1915.

The Indians now have three different logos: a block C letter and the script Indians in addition to the Chief.

"We believe the logo is an individual perception. We believe when people look at our logo they think baseball," said team spokesman Bob DiBiasio.  But he added, "we understand there are sensitivities," involved.

With the Redskins protest intensifying the issue, expect more debate about the appropriateness of the comic book character, red-skinned,  smiling Chief in the days to come.

WKYC-TV

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