Kevin Gover Explains Harm in a Name

USA Today had an informative and well done interview of Kevin Gover, Director of the National Museum of the American Indian. The article discusses that sports teams were establishing Native American mascots in the 1930s at same time that the Federal government was banning Native American traditions and culture and sending Native American children to boarding school where they were coerced to assimilate and discard their culture. What is going on here? Why was America playing Indian in sports while trying to eradicate Native American culture. The collective schizophrenia exhibited by these actions indicate a combination of fascination, shame (for committing genocide), and ownership (we dominate you and now we are going to play you on the sports field). This is why the name of the Washington professional football team is so wrong and anachronistic. If you don't want to listen to me, listen to the Native American expert highlighted in the article. Click here: http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/2016/08/24/real-history-native-american-team-names/89259596/