Braves Head

October 2021 Native American Students & Staff Share Their Perspectives On Mandan High School’s Mascot

— Ariana González, Assistant Editor-in-Chief

With the removal of Native American mascots throughout the country, it seems our school is following through with the same process. In the eyes of many activists throughout the country, Native American mascots are seen as offensive and continue to perpetuate racial and ethnic stereotypes. Over the last year or so, students have noticed that the Bravehead, our school’s mascot, has been slowly been used less. Mark Andresen, our school’s head director, shares his insight on the removal of the Bravehead. “We have currently been using more than one logo to make sure we are using the logo to make sure we are using the Bravehead in an appropiate manner,” Andresen said. “ According to Andresen, the school has received complaints about the Bravehead several times from groups outside of North Dakota. “Two times we have had meetings to discuss its use which involved Tribe members as well as community members,” Andresen said “Each time thus far we have been able to agree to keep the logo as long as we are sensitive and caring in how we use it.” In a survey sent out to Native American students who are members of the Four Directions club, 95% of the partcipants said that they do not find the Bravehead to be offensive. Robert Birdhorse, who is Native American, teaches Geography and Native American Studies. He believes there is some good and some bad about the removal of our mascot. “That is just the world we live in today,” Birdhorse said. “You have to be culturally sensitive to every race, whereas in previous times, you could say and do as you wanted.” Being Native American, Birdhorse did not find Native American mascots offensive. “I played college baseball at UND when they were the Fighting Sioux,” Birdhorse said. “A part of me took pride in having that as our logo.” Birdhorse believes that stereotypes can be perpetuated more by certain populations. “I think that the people that know the information and the

background behind the mascots do not get offended as easily,” Birdhorse said. “Whereas, the people who might not be as educated about the whole thing might have a different mindset towards it.” Junior Lily Giggee, who is also Native American, also shares a similar view to Robert Birdhorse. “I think removing it was a dumb decision,” Giggee said. “I thought it was cool and we were not asked whether we wanted to get rid of it or not.” Giggee believes that it was not offensive due to the fact that nobody was dressing up as a Native American person. “It was just a logo,” Giggee said. “It was not like we were dressing up, it would be different if we were wearing the mascot.” Giggee views the Bravehead as a form of representation and a way for people to learn about certain aspects of Native American culture. “Most people do not really know what our regalia looks like,” Giggee said. “Our mascot was also more accurate than the Cleveland Indians, since we had the full feathered dress and not just a couple little feathers.” Rather than being looked down on, Giggee believes that having a mascot like ours helps represent Native American culture in a positive way. “I think it is really cool to Photo by Ariana González have that social representation Though some people may be against the use of the Bravehead, many students and staff are in and having it in a good way, instead of a bad one,” Giggee said. Another student’s opinion comes from support of it. senior Samuel Burr, who does not like the idea of removing the Bravehead. “It has been a part of Mandan history, which we live in,” Burr said. “It makes sense to keep the Bravehead the way it is since it has been here forever.” Like Birdhorse, Burr believes that outside influences is what makes mascots, such as the Bravehead, offensive. “Everybody from Mandan is cool about it,” Burr said. “Nobody does anything vulgar with it. I do not think anyone really cares. We are known as the Mandan Braves, that is the way it is.” Despite this, it is currently unclear what the Bravehead’s future will be. “We are unsure of what the future holds,” Andresen said. “A process to review or remove may occur in the next year as we begin to brand a new school.”