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About Siletz news letter. (Siletz, Oregon) 1989-1997 | View Entire Issue (April 1, 1992)
1992 Portland Oregonian Drops Use of Indians as Sports Team Mascots PORTLAND, OR (AP) - Indians have disappeared from the sports pages of Oregon's largest newspaper, along with Braves, Redmen and Redskins. The Oregonian has declared the nicknames of those sports teams offensive and will not print them. "We do not expect the rest of the journalistic world to fall into line behind us, nor do we presume that our action will change any team names," Managing Editor Peter Thompson said in a statement. "But we have concluded that we will not be a passive participant in perpetuating racial or cultural stereotypes in our community whether by the use of nicknames or in any other way" The Oregonian is believed to be the first major U.S. newspaper to adopt such a policy. In it's Sunday editions, the 432,000- circulation paper dropped references to the Braves in an Associated Press story about part- time Atlanta Braves player Deion Sanders leaning toward a career with the Atlanta Falcons football team. The newspaper referred to the "National League champion Atlanta" or "the baseball team." The policy will apply to any team from grade school through professional sports using an Indian nickname, Thompson said. So far, the policy has been limited to the four nicknames. Sunday's Oregonian included references to the Miami Tribe, a team in the now-defunct Professional Spring Football League, and the Vancouver Canucks, a hockey team whose nickname some consider a derogatory term for Canadians. Other nicknames might be dropped "if it becomes evident that they, too, are offensive," Editor William A. Hilliard said. Indian groups have protested for years that ethnic nicknames and phony Indian costumes and gestures trivialize and mock their culture. Stanford University dropped the nickname "Indians" in 1972, and in 1989 the Minnesota Board of Education asked high schools to drop Indian nicknames, and many did. The issue gained renewed attention with the appearance of the Braves in the World Series and the Washington Redskins in the Super Bowl last month. During the World Series, Braves fans appeared on national television in fake headdresses and war paint, pumping their arms in the "tomahawk chop." Atlanta Braves general manager John Schuerholz had no comment on the newspaper's decision. "What they do in Oregon is their business." he said. Bob DiBiasio, spokesman for the Cleveland Indians, noted that the team's 78-year-old name referred to Louis F. Sockalexis, the first American Indian to play in the majors. He played for Cleveland from 1897 to 1899. Clyde Bellecourt, a founder of the Minneapolis-base American Indian Movement and spokesman for the newly formed National Coalition on Racism in Sports and the Media, said he was excited by the decision. But Dave Matheson, former Coeur d'Alene Tribal Chairman in Idaho, said that the protest is trivial and that attention should be focused instead on problems at reservations, including poor health care, unemployment and alcoholism. Matheson, deputy commissioner for Indian affairs for the Interior Department, said Indians often refer to themselves as "skins." He called the elimination of Indian nicknames an "urban Indian thing" out of tune with rural tribal concerns. About 27,300 American Indians live in Oregon , or about 1 percent of the population, according to the 1980 Census. The state has two large reservations. (Taken from the Sho-Ban News Feb) Cities Asked to Invite U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to Study Local Dam Site By: Cameron Brandt In the hope of securing greater federal support for the development of a reservoir, Lincoln County's incorporated cities have been asked to write the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers to request that the federal agency evaluate Big Rock Creek as the site of a flood control project. The tributary of the Siletz River is already under consideration as a possible site for a reservoir to meet the Lincoln County's water needs through the year 2040, but the U. S. bureau of Reclamation has indicated that most of the estimated $58 million price tag for the project would have to come from state and local sources. According to Hap Ayers, one of Lincoln County's representatives to the tri-county Water Resources Committee that has been working on the issue of long-term water storage, a determination by the Corps that there is a need for flood control could lead to greater federal support of the reservoir concept. The letters were dispatched to the cities because the Corps will only get involved at the request of a city, explained Ayers. Even if the agency agrees to do the study, it will probably be some time before it has the money to proceed, said Ayers. County Commissioner Andy Zedwick, who also serves on the tri-county committee, said that if the Corps decides a flood control project at this location has merit, the next step will be to change sponsorship of the committee's work from the Bureau of Reclamation to the Corps. In the meantime, representatives from Lincoln, Polk, and Yamhill Counties will continue to work with the Bureau of Reclamation, said Zedwick. That agency is currently studying options for water storage in the Yamhill River basin, and will present a report to the committee this summer. According to Richard Schmid, chief planner at the Mid-Willamette Valley Council of Governments, the results of the Yamhill study will not be available until July. A meeting to discuss Lincoln County's situation will probably be scheduled in April, he said. (Taken From the News Times) 9 The Fable of the Snake Many, years ago, Indian youths would go away in solitude to prepare for manhood. One such youth hiked into a beautiful valley, green with trees, bright with flowers. There he fasted. But on the third day, as he looked up at the surrounding mountains, he noticed one tall rugged peak, capped with dazzling snow. "I will test myself against that mountain", he thought. He put on his buffalo-hide shirt, threw his blanket over his shoulders and set off to climb the peak. When he reached the top, he stood on the rim of the world. He could see forever, and his heart swelled with pride. Then he heard a rustle at his feet, and looking down, he saw a snake. Before he could move, the snake spoke: "I am about to die ," said the snake. "It is too cold for me up here and I am freezing. There is no food and I am starving. Put me under your shirt and take me down to the va lle y." "No." said the youth. "I am forewarned. I know your kind. You are a rattlesnake. If I pick you up, you will bite and your bite will kill me". "Not so," said the snake. "I will treat you differently. If you do this for me, you will be special. I will not harm you.” The youth resisted awh' o, but this was a very persuasive snake with beautiful markings. At last the youth tucked it under his shirt and carried it down to the valley. There he laid it gently on the grass, when suddenly the snake coiled, rattled and leapt, biting him on the leg. "But you promised-" cried the youth. "You knew what I was when you picked me up," said the snake as it slithered away. And now, wherever I go, I tell that story. I tell it especially to the young people of this nation who might be tempted by drugs. I want them to remember the words of the snake: You knew what I was when you p ic k e d me up. By Iron Eyes Cody, Movie and TV Star
