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> Handling racism with grace > > Richard Williams > > Wednesday, March 06, 2002 - Chuck Archambault is used to people staring > at him in public. He's used to comments about his long ponytail. He's > become patient in answering the same questions about his heritage over > and over from non-natives. As a talented athlete and a role model in the > Indian community, he understands that people are curious, ignorant and > sometimes racist. > > But several weeks ago, the college student's patience for ignorance was > sorely tested while playing in a basketball game against Lipscomb > University in Nashville, Tenn. During the game, the junior guard for > Texas A&M-Corpus Christi became the target of racism by the Lipscomb > fans, who berated and taunted Archambault for no other reason than he is > Native American. > > "Go back to the reservation!" they screamed between war whoops and > tomahawk chops. "Hey, Sitting Bull, where's your teepee?" > > His teammates were shocked and angry, but as a young Indian man from the > Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota, Archambault is no > stranger to comments from the stands - it comes with the territory. > > But on that night, in a major Southern city, at a tony private university > that is affiliated with the Church of Christ, it became too personal. Not > only were these behaviors intended to break his spirit and get him off > his game, they were also a putdown that went to the very core of who he > is as a human being. > > But as Indian people, we often are not viewed as human beings in this > country. Through mascots like Chief Wahoo of the Cleveland Indians and > the Washington Redskins, we are objectified and treated with a double > standard on the issue of racism in sports. > > We know, for example, that no sports crowd in America would ever yell at > another basketball player for his African-American, Hispanic or Jewish > ancestry - references to race are simply not tolerated, as Denver Nuggets > head coach Dan Issel recently found out. Sports announcer Howard Cosell's > ill-considered use of the words "that little monkey" in describing Alvin > Garrett while announcing an NFL game on ABC in the 1980s almost cost him > his career. Within hours, the comment ignited a racially charged > firestorm that put the country on notice by the black community: We will > not tolerate this kind of language, even in jest. > > That Garrett was playing for the Redskins, whose name and mascot are > reviled by Indian people, is a bitter irony overshadowed by the greater > realization that we remain at the tail end of the civil rights movement > in a country that believes it's OK to openly insult and humiliate Indian > people. > > But it is not OK. > > In spite of a recent Sports Illustrated article to the contrary, we do > not like to be called "Chief" or "Tonto" or "Pocahontas" or "Geronimo." > We do not like the "war whoop" or the idiotic "tomahawk chop." Do not > greet us with the word "how." We do not like team names that insult our > people and we do not like stereotypical sports mascots. And when we > compete, we want to be treated with respect and sportsmanship, without > comments on our hair, our "red" skin or our culture. > > Archambault is one of fewer than half a dozen American-Indian basketball > players in Division I of the NCAA, an unfortunate statistic that is made > all the more poignant by the fact that he has comported himself with > dignity in the face of grinding racism in a sport he loves so much. > > With 19 points in the game, he was the leading scorer of the night, but > it was a career high spoiled by a crowd that chose to focus on his race > and culture rather than the fact that he was simply an opponent. Texas > A&M-Corpus Christi still lost by two points that night, but Chuck > Archambault won. By staying on his game and not giving in to the crowd's > ignorance, he has taught us all that true grace comes from the inside. > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Richard Williams is the executive director of the American Indian College > Fund, a historian, educator and the founder of the Upward Bound Program > at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Compass is designed to provide > a platform for members of communities that are often under-represented in > The Post's opinion pages. Members of the Compass panel are selected each > spring. > > Printable View > > Email a Copy of this Article > > Return to top > > > > > > All contents Copyright 2002 The Denver Post or other copyright holders. > All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, > rewritten or redistributed for any commercial purpose. -- André Cramblit: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Operations Director Northern California Indian Development Council NCIDC (http://www.ncidc.org) is a non-profit that meets the development needs of American Indians and operates an art gallery featuring the art of California tribes (http://www.americanindianonline.com) ======== An American Classic =========================== There's a good reason why Reader's Digest has long been one of America's favorite magazines. Find out why that's true by trying a risk-free subscription now! http://click.topica.com/caaacQ3b1ddNBb2HgmNf/TopOffers ================================================= Visit and show your support for the Grass Roots Oyate http://members.tripod.com/GrassRootsOyate Clemency for Leonard Peltier. 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