blocccc.jpg

The Tribe can smell which way the winds are blowing, looks like. Via Uniwatch, the Cleveland Indians are changing their official primary logo from Chief Wahoo to the Block C.

Wahoo’s not disappearing, of course, but the “phasing out” process has begun. The MLB wants no part in Wahoo affiliation either. Last year, there was no Cleveland Indians’ Wahoo apparel or paraphernalia at All-Star Weekend.

If you haven’t read Scene’s seminal takedown of Chief Wahoo, please do so.

This article appears in Jan 1-7, 2014.

Sam Allard is a former senior writer at Scene.

45 replies on “Cleveland Indians Changing Official Primary Logo to Block C”

  3. BS I think the Dolan’s tout this as respect for Native Americans when in reality their broke as’ are just using it as an excuse to cut cost and go with a cheaper logo… But bet you won’t see them doing away with memorabilia that refers to the team as the Tribe…

  4. I’m italian, i have no problem with Mario and Luigi being caricatures of Italians. ….just saying…lighten up.

  5. Wow…the “B-logo” which is now the “A-logo” remains extraordinarily creative and powerfully provides linkage with the city. Stop the charade, have a contest for a new nickname and the Dolan’s can gleefully mark up all the Wahoo gear at least 125% as “throwback” merchandise.

  7. Chief Wahoo – People Not Mascots’ Logo
    Artist : David Jakupca
    Acrylic on Canvas 22″ x 28″ 1992 Signed Lower Right
    Current Owner assumed to be Lake Erie Native American Council (LENAC)

    The ‘People Not Mascots’ Logo is meant to be a Native American protest caricature of the Cleveland Indians Baseball team. It was originally painted by David Jakupca at the historic ARK in Berea incorporating elements of the Theory of Iceality on Environmental Arts, it has drawn criticism from some sportswriters, fans and local businessmen, but gained immediate acceptance among humanitarian, religious groups and Native Americans. It gained international popular attention when it was it exhibited by ICEA at the 1993 UN World Conference on Human Rights held in Vienna, Austria and has become one of the most recognized anti-racists logo’s in existence. It also caused repercussions for the groups connected with using the logo in protest demonstrations and this has been documented in the INTERNECINE MATRIX..

  8. It already was changed. It was just never announced. Sad for one ofthe most unique logos in sports.

  9. Just retire that ridiculous thing already. Rebrand with something cool, something everyone can enjoy, and make some $.

  11. “Rich P” said:

    “I’m italian, i have no problem with Mario and Luigi being caricatures of Italians. ….just saying…lighten up.”

    Yeah, lighten up, Native Americans…just laugh that genocide off!

  12. “Phasing Out”? Grow a pair and get rid of it completely already. It’s cursed us for too long.

  13. Maybe we should get rid of the dolphin from the Miami dolphins due to the mistreatment and butchering of them by the Chinese/Japanese. Or get rid of the fighting Irish guy from Notre Dame since we all know how poorly the Irish were treated in the early part of the 20th century.
    And I believe the black Panther is an endangered species so sorry Carolina Panthers. And if you are a “patriot”, well than your probably some right-wing-lunatic tea party guy so New England, you’re out. And of course the buffalo was slaughtered almost to the sight of extinction in an effort to hurt the American natives, so Buffalo, you lose. Oakland? well, raiders are just scary, so we can’t have that. New Orleans? Well the “saints” might be some sort of endorsement of religion, so that has to change. Tampa Bay? Buccaneers were violent pirate types who raped and pillaged, oh yeah, so did the Vikings. Sorry Minnesota, gotta get a new mascot. And of course, lets not forget about the Redskins, Kansas City Chiefs, and the Atlanta Braves. Sooooo offensive! They have to go too. Oh then there’s the NY Yankees, a derogatory name given to northerners i suppose so lets scrap the Yankee name.
    Kind of ridiculous right? RIGHT!!!

  15. @Politicallyincorrect22: Agreed! If Chief Wahoo’s caricature was intentionally meant to be disrespective, then I would concur with all the easily offended bleeding hearts. I’m of Sicilian descent, and there were no caricatures in the “Godfather” series that offended me. I was too distracted by the awesomeness of the quality of the screenplay.

  16. How about a new marketing slogan for the Indians and their fans who cling to the Wahoo:

    TAKE PRIDE IN THE GENOCIDE!

    Brilliant.

  17. I can’t believe that your doing this.. Racism? Politically correct??? WTH . You can’t think for yourself.. Pressure got to you !! Just remember that when your looking for your freedom somewhere !!!! Its not gonna be there..

  19. I’m not Native American and I phased out my Wahoo gear over a decade ago, because it’s icky to me. I was rooting for the cursive I, but this works for me. There are plenty of Natives who aren’t offended by these mascots, and there are plenty that are. How they feel is not for we non-natives to dictate…any more than non-Asians should tell Asians how to feel about this.

    I won’t tell you how to feel about this, but I will say I’m glad it’s happening.

  21. right or wrong, it is just a logo. a picture that represents an idea. but it is being changed and it is all about the money. did you read the part up top?

    “The MLB wants no part in Wahoo affiliation either. Last year, there was no Cleveland Indians’ Wahoo apparel or paraphernalia at All-Star Weekend.

    the indian’s club house could care less what the name is, but you start taking away the money. then you have a fight on your hands. they dont give a damn what you think as long as you got your $60 for a seat.

  22. I’m irish… guess we gotta get rid of “The Fighting Irish”… Every nationality/culture has been persecuted in some way at some time…. give me a break…

  26. It is racist and the First Nations have gone through enough horrors , it isn’t for anyone else to decide if it offends them then it has to go.

  29. P.C. nonsense… I absolutely despise the whiney, crybaby, PC plague that’s infecting our country.
    This was my favorite comment on this: ” Maybe we should get rid of the dolphin from the Miami dolphins due to the mistreatment and butchering of them by the Chinese/Japanese. Or get rid of the fighting Irish guy from Notre Dame since we all know how poorly the Irish were treated in the early part of the 20th century.And I believe the black Panther is an endangered species so sorry Carolina Panthers. And if you are a “patriot”, well then you’re probably some right-wing-lunatic tea party guy so New England, you’re out. And of course the buffalo was slaughtered almost to the sight of extinction in an effort to hurt the American natives, so Buffalo, you lose. Oakland? well, raiders are just scary, so we can’t have that. New Orleans? Well the “saints” might be some sort of endorsement of religion, so that has to change. Tampa Bay? Buccaneers were violent pirate types who raped and pillaged, oh yeah, so did the Vikings. Sorry Minnesota, gotta get a new mascot. And of course, lets not forget about the Redskins, Kansas City Chiefs, and the Atlanta Braves. Sooooo offensive! They have to go too. Oh then there’s the NY Yankees, a derogatory name given to northerners I suppose so lets scrap the Yankee name. Kind of ridiculous right? RIGHT!!!”

  30. Really??? It’s has been offensive from the geeko…but everyone thought we were all gone.. but hey(waving) there is a tons of us still alive! Come to NM…& you will see us… in all forms… organizers, dr. lawyers, & yes Tribal presidents… Yea…this is a direct hit to our people…our next generations of our youth. Try explaining to a 6 yr old native kid why people are still making fun of them in this day & age… not to mention Ford’s westerns…that has developed a million stereotypes each generation has to live through & break down… in your colonized world & mind set it seems okay but over 500 yrs of this is getting old….don’t you think? Therefore we are definitely happy about the change…now what about the rest?

  31. At the rate we are going, the State of Oklahoma will have to change its name.
    okla=people; homma=red. We simply cannot abide calling red people red.
    Even if it was Indians that gave themselves that red designtion.

  32. WE did what? okay…in your “colonized mind” you can make statements like that & think you are right? But in the real world you are so wrong on many levels. If I look down at my skin at the moment it is far from “red” I believe most “white” Americans look more red then any of us. In our language(which is very much still alive just like us) the name for your people is “Bilagáana” which I was told in English “people that don’t make sense…or understand” . I guess this works in your case.

  33. Wow it’s Baseball …… Lighten Up. The team name is “Indians” . I guess “Braves” “Seminoles” “Redskins” “Chiefs” are less offensive. Whatever…..

  34. You see …you just can’t help but look down on other people of color…b/c you have no idea what if feels like… this is called “white privilege”>refers to the set of societal privileges that white people benefit from beyond those commonly experienced by people of color in the same social, political, or economic spaces (nation, community, workplace, income, etc.).[note 1] The term denotes both obvious and less obvious unspoken advantages that white individuals may not recognize they have, which distinguishes it from overt bias or prejudice.[1] These include cultural affirmations of one’s own worth; presumed greater social status; and freedom to move, buy, work, play, and speak freely.[2] The concept of white privilege also implies the right to assume the universality of one’s own experiences, marking others as different or exceptional while perceiving oneself as normal.<<< Therefore... your blinded to realize OF COURSE IT IS OFFENSIVE! Geez... & if is "just baseball" then let the name go... & "game on!"

  35. This is total bullshiit ….I’m tired of our liberal society dictating what we are supposed to do and think……The Chief Wahoo logo is cool… and is a unique logo….maybe the Florida Marlins and Tampa Rays should change their logos too because they may offend marlins or stingrays….What a freakin joke…. come on people get a life!!!

  36. Boring as hell and pretty much the same as those other cities that have used the letter “C” (Can you say Cincinnati and Chicago, boys and girls? Can you spell them?)

    Hell, at least it isn’t that farshtunkener “script I” that makes me think I’m seeing an Indianapolis Clowns throwback cap, or something like that.

    Personally, I’ve always preferred the “original” (hook-nosed) 1947 Wahoo…better skintone…and he looks more Jewish.

    Chuckles the Clowen

  37. The indians are named after a famous early player who was a Passamaquoddy indian from Maine. Anyone stop to think about how they feel about this? HInt: They’re not feeling like you’re honoring their dignity by being politically correct.

  40. What do Italians have to whine about? They’re not victims of genocide. Of course nobody here is offended because it’s not your culture being mocked. The fact that the lot of you are complain and whining about phasing out a logo that doesn’t even affect the team in anyway, while knowing it is offending and mocking an entire race of people shows how petty and close minded you are.

  41. This is so sad they are called the indians in honor of the first native American baseball player that played for the Cleveland spiders i wish ppl would understand that its not an offence

  42. Jimmy Schubert:

    Is your best argument really that Native Americans should be afforded the same level of dignity as fish?

  43. Simple solution: Cleveland is supposed to have A-list advertising agencies here. Just have one of them design a better logo. It’s their job, you know. The taxpayers will be paying for it in the end anyway. At least we can have something that isn’t generic (like a blank brown background for a football team) and we all can take pride in the result. At least, until someone else complains.

  44. i find this new “C” logo to be very offensive. it does not represent anyone whose name starts with a C in a positive light.

  45. As a Native American Indian I think it`s time to respost this article on how a Native American Indian see`s it through his eyes:

    Native American perspective on the mascot issue; this is an excerpt from “Wolf at Twilight” by Kent Nerburn.

    “A white man and an elderly Native man became pretty good friends, so the white guy decided to ask him: “What do you think about Indian mascots?” The Native elder responded, “Here’s what you’ve got to understand. When you look at black people, you see ghosts of all the slavery and the rapes and the hangings and the chains. When you look at Jews, you see ghosts of all those bodies piled up in death camps. And those ghosts keep you trying to do the right thing. “But when you look at us you don’t see the ghosts of the little babies with their heads smashed in by rifle butts at the Big Hole, or the old folks dying by the side of the trail on the way to Oklahoma while their families cried and tried to make them comfortable, or the dead mothers at Wounded Knee or the little kids at Sand Creek who were shot for target practice. You don’t see any ghosts at all. “Instead you see casinos and drunks and junk cars and shacks. “Well, we see those ghosts. And they make our hearts sad and they hurt our little children. And when we try to say something, you tell us, ‘Get over it. This is America. Look at the American dream.’ But as long as you’re calling us Redskins and doing tomahawk chops, we can’t look at the American dream, because those things remind us that we are not real human beings to you. And when people aren’t humans, you can turn them into slaves or kill six million of them or shoot them down with Hotchkiss guns and throw them into mass graves at Wounded Knee. “No, we’re not looking at the American dream. And why should we? We still haven’t woken up from the American nightmare.”.

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