Defensive Dialogues: Native American Mascots, Anti-Indianism, and Educational Institutions

Abstract

Exploring the arguments and practices employed by educational institutions to defend the continued use of Native American names, logos, and imagery, this article argues that such efforts derive from and promote anti-Indianism. After an outline of the scope and significance of anti-Indianism, the common arguments advanced in defense of mascots are discussed. The central strategies employed by educational institutions in an effort to preserve “their” Indians are identified, with particular emphasis on misrecognition, possessiveness, compromise, denial, deferral, endorsement, and terror. The significance of these anti-Indian practices for Native Americans is addressed, and suggestions are made about ways to critically read such enactments of Indianness.