Cleveland’s Major League baseball team will no longer be the “Indians,” the New York Times has reported.
The decision to drop the name the team has had since 1915 came down on Sunday in the midst of social justice movements to stop sports teams from using Native American-themed elements for their mascots.
The team already began phasing out Chief Wahoo before the 2019 season, moving to the block C logo for all uniforms and imagery.
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) July 4, 2020
There was talk of dropping the mascot name prior to the 2020 season like Washington’s NFL team did to their “Redskins” mascot, but Cleveland kept the name for another season.
Back in July of 2020, the Indians released a statement describing their commitment to social justice and “the best path forward with regard to our team name.”
Cleveland’s move away from Indians follows a similar decision this year by the NFL’s Washington Football Team, which was previously known as the Redskins.
