Atlanta Braves: Why it’s Time to Get Rid of Tomahawk Chop
By Seth Carter
When the Atlanta Braves were the elephant in New York’s Room
In March of 2013, the New York Mets reached out to a local nonprofit called the American Indian Community House about working together to raise money and awareness of Native American culture.
As the event approached, the Mets looked at the schedule, and in July of 2013, they pulled the plug. The problem for the Mets? The Atlanta Braves were the opposition that night. A night in which they actually planned to celebrate Native American history and customs, raise awareness and money, they were going to have an opponent who had to walk back the reintroduction of the “Screaming Savage” logo earlier that spring.
The Mets were concerned that the Braves would perceive the festivities as a protest against their team’s name.
Folks, there’s something seriously wrong with that last sentence.
"“Being a nonprofit in the city, we’re not in the business of making enemies,” Kevin Tarrant, the deputy director of the A.I.C.H., told the New York Times. “This whole thing wasn’t even our idea. But it just feels like we’re being marginalized again within our own community.”"
The date of July 25 was initially chosen to sync up with a large powwow scheduled in Queens. The fact that the Braves were going to be in town turned out to be a coincidence. It was something they hadn’t put much thought into in all of the excitement of planning the event.
"“It wasn’t like we were planning to protest anything,” Tarrant said. “We just thought it would be great to show natives in a positive light — that we’re human beings, and we’re not from 300 years ago. We’re visible."
Tarrant’s last statement is the big issue here. Native American people are not some legends from a bygone era, they are people that live here right now.
If the Atlanta Braves truly honored Native American culture and history, then this should have been a match made in heaven. Instead, the Mets were too worried that the Braves would be offended by the celebration of ACTUAL Native Americans on this particular night.