Braves Need to Brace for assult on Logo, Chop, History in 2021

[rico43]

An article that orginally appeared in USA Today and has been reprinted on Yahoo's cover page celebrates that MLB was successful at getting the Cleveland Indians to eliminate their Chief Wahoo logo from all merchandise, marketing and advertising in and around their ballpark, with the understanding that this was a condition of Cleveland getting this year's all-star game.

The article hints that, with the Braves in line to host the all-star game in 2021, Rob Manfried (or his corporate entity) will put pressure on the Braves to eliminate any Native American portrayal from their uniform and stadium -- especially the Tomahawk Chop. The writer of the article, who apparently has only a passing familiarity with the chop's origin, wrote "apparently" Deion Sanders brought it with him from Florida State. Truth be told, injured pitcher Mark Grant began it from the dugout whenever Sanders batted because of his Florida State background. The Braves organist was quick to catch on, and the fans did likewise. It was an organic, spontaneous celebration that has endured now into its third stadium

Wrote Gabe Lacques, the article's author:
"As for the Braves, their Tomahawk Chop – powered by the haunting bars coming out of the house organ – should also have been retired long ago. ... Trouble is, does anybody know what they’re chanting? Is reciting what amounts to gibberish honoring a tribe? Or merely fulfilling your vision of what native peoples looked and sounded like?
With SunTrust Park set to host the 2021 All-Star Game, it might have been nice if MLB gently nudged the Braves to lose the Chop, at least as a team-endorsed rallying cry."

The Braves have eliminated the Laughing Brave logo from their sleeves, and ever Native American Levi Walker Jr. -- aka Noc-A-Homa -- was purged long before the chop emerged. Most fans would say that the club has been reasonably sensitive to Native American concerns, short of dropping the nickname itself. (Wonder how "Crackers" would go over in 2021 as a nickname?)
Just saying that it's not far-fetched that the meddlesome Manfried will set his sights on the Braves and pressure them to drop the chop. Since it is still largely a spontaneous act, I don't know that it can be done. I'm just saying I expect them to try.

 

[striker42]

Can we somehow convince Manfred that Blooper is a native American and get him to direct his ire at that abomination?

 

[Braves1976]

Given Manfried's MO and the mood of the times, I expect you are right that they will at least try. Hopefully they will fail in doing so.

Cracker btw is an old Scottish Celtic term, "CRACKER

Another Ulster-Scot term, a "cracker" was a person who talked and boasted, and "craic" (Crack) is a term still used in Scotland and Ireland to describe "talking", chat or conversation in a social sense ("Let’s go down to the pub and have a craic"; "what's the craic"). The term, first used to describe a southerner of Ulster-Scottish background, later became a nickname for any white southerner, especially those who were uneducated.

And while not an exclusively Southern term, but rather referring in general to all Americans, the origins of this word are related to the other three." Source: https://www.scotshistoryonline.co.uk/rednecks/rednecks.html.

 

[tululush]

Would this mean we’d lose the tomahawk on our uniforms on our chest (have to wear something similar to our Sunday uniforms without the tomahawk)? I’d hate that. I love our uniform with the tomahawk underneath our name on the chest.

 

[goldfly]

wouldn't be the worst thing to happen


but i'm sure a bunch of people that tell people they overreact to things will melt over this and not see the irony

 

[rico43]

My moment of inspiration is that the Braves abandon the nickname and call themselves the Atlanta Kings -- as in Martin Luther, as in royalty better than you, as in all the fun you can have with it.
Like when you beat the Marlins, you can say you've gone serfing.
And with all the potential "rooks of the year" ...
And of course, we would often play Knight games.

 

[The Tariff King]

My moment of inspiration is that the Braves abandon the nickname and call themselves the Atlanta Kings -- as in Martin Luther, as in royalty better than you, as in all the fun you can have with it.
Like when you beat the Marlins, you can say you've gone serfing.
And with all the potential "rooks of the year" ...
And of course, we would often play Knight games.

Don't forget as well that geographically speaking, Braves Country encompasses many traditional areas where the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan also are doing the Tomahawk Chop.

 

[Acuña’s Bat Flip]

Cleveland did the Tomahawk Chop when we played there earlier this season, I wouldn't worry very much about these "rumors".

 

[Coredor]

Anybody who pushes this can KMA. It’s time we stop giving into cultural terrorists who want to attack our traditions and institutions. If Manfred does this I’ll hate him more than Goodell. He already destroyed our international program over things that are pretty widespread.

So we should tell them to shut up or we’ll put Nocahoma and his teepee inside the outfield gate. If it bothers the actual people who come to games it would be different but I’ve known a whole lot more Braves fans that would be ticked about doing away with it than ones who had any concerns about it.

 

[goldfly]

Anybody who pushes this can KMA. It’s time we stop giving into cultural terrorists who want to attack our traditions and institutions.

lol

 

[BeanieAntics]

wouldn't be the worst thing to happen


but i'm sure a bunch of people that tell people they overreact to things will melt over this and not see the irony

I love this new left/right paradigm that has developed. Its turned into them arguing about which side is the most outraged about things.

The left is outraged by the term owners because: racist.
The right is outraged that the left is outraged because: stupid

I don't really care which side ends up more outraged or which sides makes themselves look the stupidest. I just want it to keep going because its really, really funny.

 

[rico43]

I love this new left/right paradigm that has developed. Its turned into them arguing about which side is the most outraged about things.

The left is outraged by the term owners because: racist.
The right is outraged that the left is outraged because: stupid

I don't really care which side ends up more outraged or which sides makes themselves look the stupidest. I just want it to keep going because its really, really funny.

The phrase to live by is as follows:

The right thinks those on the left are wrong.
The left thinks those on the right are evil.

 

[thethe]

The phrase to live by is as follows:

The right thinks those on the left are wrong.
The left thinks those on the right are evil.

This...the amount of people that are actually offended by these logos are small. Dont cave to the twitterverse.

 

[50PoundHead]

I really don't care. They can be the Atlanta Bumblebees and I'd still be a fan. All this faux outrage on both sides just tires me out.

 

[Super]

if it bothers people, why not just get rid of it. is it really that big of a deal

 

[CyYoung31]

Would this mean we’d lose the tomahawk on our uniforms on our chest (have to wear something similar to our Sunday uniforms without the tomahawk)? I’d hate that. I love our uniform with the tomahawk underneath our name on the chest.

There’s nothing inherently racist about a tomahawk. So, I wouldn’t worry about that. The chop, on the other hand, is racist. Problem is, you can stop the team from promoting it but you’re not going to keep the fans from doing it if they choose to.

 

[msstate7]

I don't really know how all Indians feel about the braves, but I do live basically on an Indian reservation, Choctaw Indian. Their late, great Chief Phillip Martin was asked was he offended the by the name "braves", their logo, or chop; he responded with none of that is offensive... the offensive part is them sucking while using it (haha). The pearl river resort (Choctaw casinos) sponsor the braves still today.

The Seminoles seem to love FSU.

No idea how other tribes feel about braves and other sports teams using Native nicknames

 

[Southcack77]

The phrase to live by is as follows:

The right thinks those on the left are wrong.
The left thinks those on the right are evil.

the far ends of both parties think the other is evil.

 

[weso1]

if it bothers people, why not just get rid of it. is it really that big of a deal

It's a pretty cool fan experience when you're at the games. I took my kids recently to their first Braves game and they really enjoyed the chant. It actually may have been there favorite part. As with all things like this it's important to ask who is really offended and why is it offensive. Is it just a small percentage of midwits feigning offense or is it truly offensive to that demographic.

 

[Southcack77]

There’s nothing inherently racist about a tomahawk. So, I wouldn’t worry about that. The chop, on the other hand, is racist. Problem is, you can stop the team from promoting it but you’re not going to keep the fans from doing it if they choose to.

The chop is at baseline just as dumb now as it was when the Braves copied it from FSU. That's outside of the cultural issue, which was a thing before the Braves adopted it, but you know -- the South.

I suspect the average native american doesn't give a ****, but it's pretty racist to boil down a culture to a made up bunch of bull****, I guess.

They shouldn't do it any more, but it's pretty clear the outcry from pissing off a bunch of folks about taking their "traditions" from them is probably going to be louder than twitter and the biannual think piece.