America, the most easily offended country on the planet.

(Disclaimer: Please keep in mind this is a personal blog where I write my personal opinion. My writing is not meant to offend (how ironic) any reader.)

No one, maybe except the easily offended, can deny that our country is the most easily offended country on God's green earth. From the discontinuation of television shows to the modification of television commercials, companies are forced to change their strategies, images and catch phrases due to people being offended. I cannot recall a time when I've seen a movie, television show, television commercial, sports team name or logo, that has offended me. I am all for equality, no matter the race or background, and if there were such an image or phrase that I felt negatively portrayed a group of individuals, I would be displeased but not offended. I am not even offended by blonde jokes and please believe I've heard enough of them that probably should have offended me.

The more talked about controversies however are in the sports world.

The Washington Redskins do not offend me. The Dallas Cowboys do not offend me. The Florida State Seminoles do not offend me. The Cleveland Indians do not offend me. The University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) Rebels, now the Ole Miss Black Bears thanks to  the offended, does not offend me. I see these mascots and team names as tribute and heritage. However, instead of seeing these images and caricatures as positive images of our history, the easily-offended demand they be changed. I searched for a percentage of how many Native Americans are actually offended by the use of Native American images in sports but none were found. 

You are probably wondering what has brought up this seemingly random topic. Two words, a proper noun, a symbol--Chief Noc-A-Homa. 

The Braves have brought back Chief Noc-A-Homa on their batting practice caps for the 2013 season. The "screaming savage," better known by Braves' fans as Chief Noc-A-Homa, was retired on Braves gear in 1989. I was born in 1989 so the "screaming savage" is only an image I've seen in pictures, never seen in person obviously. According to Wikipedia, "the name was intended to to be a playful variation of 'Knock a Homer'." Chief Noc-A-Homa would exit his teepee in left field and dance when a Braves player hit a home run. For my parents' generation, the "screaming savage" image and Chief Noc-A-Homa was the symbol of Braves baseball. Chief Noc-A-Homa is to an older Braves fan like the Tomahawk Chop is to Braves' fans of my generation. 

In the past 25 years, the controversy over Native American culture depictions for sports teams has grown. I read through quite a few discussion boards accompanying articles and it would seem that not all Native Americans are on the same side. Some feel that the images positively portray Native Americans as brave and strong and a tribute to their ancestors and our country's past. The only consistent comment by those offended (whether of NA descent or not) was we [the people of America] pushed the Native Americans off their land, etc. and that we [the people] are mocking them. I, however, don't see that as the case. I highly doubt any creator or owner of any major sports team with a seemingly offensive name chose that particular name to be purposely offensive. If I were to have created the Washington Redskins or any other Native American culture-related sports team, I would want to choose a name that depicts positive, strong characteristics. My grade school mascot was the knight. The knight itself is a strong character with strong adjectives that define it. 

However, you can't please everyone and in the highly politically correct world we now live in, it's almost impossible to not offend someone. My advice to those easily offended-- lighten up. 

Related links:

10 Most Controversial College Mascots Ever

Chief Noc-A-Homa Still a Braves Legend

Braves Bring Back Chief Noc-A-Homa for Batting Practice Caps

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