The Iconic Logo That Will Probably Outlive Us All!
On Guardians Opening Day, I was listening to Tony Rizzo. The Cleveland sports radio icon said he’d just watched the classic movie Major League and was reminiscing about how much he loved seeing that old Chief Wahoo logo. He didn’t imply the logo should be brought back—he was simply noting how instantly recognizable Chief Wahoo is and the flood of memories it brings back.
Tony said, “If people were offended by it, I completely understand, and for that, I’m okay with it being gone.” Looking back on the years of debate, I still believe the pressure from league offices across all major sports played the biggest role in the demise of Chief Wahoo. Major League Baseball wanted to maintain its image, even though some people—oddly, not a majority of Native Americans—found it offensive.
For instance, a 2002 Sports Illustrated poll (not specific to Chief Wahoo but addressing Native mascots generally) found that 81% of Native American respondents living on reservations did not object to the use of Native imagery in sports, suggesting a diversity of views. Specific to Chief Wahoo, some Native American fans of the team embraced the logo as part of their regional identity.
On the other hand, many Native individuals and groups, such as the National Congress of American Indians and the Cleveland American Indian Movement, strongly opposed Chief Wahoo, viewing it as a racist caricature that mocked their heritage and perpetuated harmful stereotypes. Decades of protests outside Cleveland’s stadium, especially on Opening Day, underscored this sentiment, with activists arguing that the red-faced, grinning logo dehumanized Native people and trivialized their culture.
As for the protests, they may have been a little staged. I have it on good authority from someone associated with the team at the time that the owner of the Cleveland Indians, Dick Jacobs, would, on Opening Day, write a check to those groups mentioned above, shake their hands, and say, “See you next year.”
It’s all water under the bridge now, and that logo ain’t ever coming back. Different solutions—a compromise—could have been reached, but we’ve moved on from it. This is just a current look back, something I’m sure we’ll do from time to time. Long after all us boomers die off, I imagine Chief Wahoo will still be seen lurking around.
Daryl Ruiter, a 28-year sports media veteran currently with
@923TheFan, posted an image on X. Daryl says, “This should become the Guardians’ primary logo.”
To which Todd Krieger replied, “Fixed It!”
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