Commit To Keeping Your Mouth Shut

The Blackhawks may have dodged a bullet last week when they briefly considered -- and wisely rejected -- the slogan “Commit to the Indian”, a reference to an off-the-cuff remark by head coach Dennis Savard during a postgame tirade that followed a lackluster loss.

Many Native American mascots and images -- most notably, in these parts, Chief Illiniwek -- are being retired in a wave of cultural tolerance. The Blackhawk logo on the team’s sweater, for whatever reason, has never been targetted. The “Commit to the Indian” slogan almost certainly would be.

As regular readers know, I was a strong proponent of retiring the laughably innaccurate Chief. That being the case, some of you will find my next stance to be hypocritical. Others will find it to be treasonous. Still others will point out, very unnecessarily, that I’ve just accounted for more people than actually read this blog. But that doesn’t change the fact that I see nothing offensive about the Chief Blackhawk logo.

There are several reasons why I find the Blackhawk logo defensible. For one thing, it’s a reference to one guy -- Chief Blackhawk -- for whom all sorts of things in northern Illinois are named. Streets, schools, even the World War I army division that the original Blackhawks owner served in, all recall the legendary chief.

For another, the logo on the sweater is a dignified, reasonable likeness of that man, with no cartoonish features or glaring inaccuracies. And the connection goes no further than the Blackhawk image: There are no references to the team as a tribe, no goofy, artificial “dances” in between periods. Lastly, you could argue that a team in the brutal sport of hockey is a fitting tribute for a man who truly was a savage warrior.

Perhaps these are the reasons there have never been protests against the Blackhawks as there have been for the University of Illinois, the Washington Redskins, the Cleveland Indians and the Atlanta Braves. It’s more likely that there’s never been a protest because nobody pays attention to hockey. Whatever the reason, let’s just forget that anyone ever said “Commit to the Indian” and go back to wearing our Blackhawks sweaters with pride and grace.