Apology for video depiction of 'Indian' mascot
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Filed Under:
Education
The athletics director at the University of Virginia apologized for the use of an Indian image in a pre-game video.
UVa played the College of William & Mary last week. Even though W&M has dropped Indian imagery associated with its "Tribe" name, the video portrayed Indian people in a negative light.
"This video resurrected an old debate — and an even older stereotype — by the use of a demeaning and childish caricature of an American Indian," athletics director Craig K. Littlepage said in a letter published in The Cavalier Daily. "This is a stereotype that all of us know is a sad relic of a time when many, perhaps most, Americans misunderstood American Indians and their proud heritage, largely because of media images not unlike the one in the Cavman video last week."
Anna Fairchild, a student, had complained about the "savage' depiction of the Indian in an earlier letter to the newspaper.
Get the Story:
Indian depiction prompts apology from UVa official
(The Charlottesville Daily Progress 9/16)
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