Besides the fact that it equates an entire people with crude, blind violence, the region the team calls home is particularly fraught. The 49ers returned to the NFC Championship in Harbaughs third season, making it three in a row. San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo (10) acknowledges the fans as he exits the field to the locker room following the NFC Divisional Round playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings. Discovery Company. There was actually a write-in contest for local Kansas City denizens to name the team. In just four years, Harbaugh left the 49ers as one of their most successful head coaches. 49ers get high marks for facilities, player treatment in NFLPA survey, 49ers GM John Lynch talks Purdy surgery, Lance recovery, Garoppolo exit, Brady retirement, 49ers must survey NFLs quarterback landscape at scouting combine, Mike McGlinchey soon to strike it rich, if not from 49ers then as free agent, is the nickname for those who flocked to northern California in 1849, also a kind of Olympic-style racing dinghy, team founder Tony Morabito saw opportunity where others saw uncertainty, are registered as the San Francisco Forty Niners,, French prospectors were the first to bring the chewy, tangy sourdough recipe, Dear Abby: My wife said she doesn't like it, but it's part of my life. "There's colleges and there's high schoolswhere it's a really big deal, because you're talking about young kids that are impressionable and are developing their thought process about life, their self-awareness, self-esteem, consciousness, all that developed in those years and when you have unfriendly, American Indian imagery and mascots, to the American Indian kids that go to those schoolsthere certainly is an impact that is not good," Allis said. While other teams would end up adapting this method by putting more players on the line of scrimmage to rush the quarterback, this formation has been used in football ever since. The nation is coming to grips with that. In one of the earliest conflicts, a group of white miners from Oregon barged into the nearby Maidu hamlet, beat and shot the men, and savagely assaulted a number of the women. But, more importantly, this is about recognizing whats happening right now. While the Kansas City Chiefs have in recent years taken steps to improve their relationship with Native American communities, they have not banned offensive regalia from their games, ended their problematic rituals or seriously considered changing their name. Besides, would a single person in Kansas City be any less stoked if the Kansas City Wolves were going to the Super Bowl? Despite the Senates formal rejection, federal and state officials in California carried on as if the treaties were in forceand apparently nobody bothered to inform the tribes of their true status under the law. Houston Colt .45s? Worse yet, theres little to no purchase on the harrowing nature of Indigenous life today for the 572 nations that are living on Indian reservations across this country. Not to compare the two, but there was a notable difference between the iteration of slavery happening in California and the plantation system of the American South. I know they starve; I know they perish by hundreds It is a crying sin that our government, so wealthy and so powerful, should shut its eyes to the miserable fate of these rightful owners of the soil.. In the summer of 2020, they announced that they were retiring their name and logo, after decades of criticism that the name was an anti-indigenous slur . They would go on to win three in a row. These prospectors were dubbed the 49ers.. Native Americans aren't the only victims associated with the Gold Rush. Olympic Valley continues to shed a racist slur that was in the names of businesses, roads and geographical . (Salon reached out to both the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers organizations and did not receive a response.) He was called from his house by a [local white man], whose name we did not learn, and who without any provocation whatever, plunged a knife into his heart, killing him instantly. The renamed arrowhead chop. Whopping and chanting. Read: The future of Native American imagery in sports, Sutter and others tried to keep the discovery a secret, but word spread quickly, and soon the population of California swelled. As bad as invoking the 49ers as a sports team may be, though, the Kansas City Chiefs are even worse. Associated Press articles: Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. Americans (of all cultural backgrounds) are woefully uneducated or, worse, miseducated about anything pertaining to Indigenous history or our modern lives. Where African slaves were seen as a chattel-based equity investment, Indigenous Californians were being enslaved to be worked to death and replaced until they were all gone. In fact, James Marshall and John Sutter, the two men linked with the start of one of the most pivotal events in California history, never got rich. What Makes it So Hot? 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The symbolism of the modern Olympics celebrates nations working together peacefully in athletic competition. It should go without saying that it is wrong to perpetuate stereotypical imagery, engage in cultural appropriation and reduce centuries of oppression and suffering into a cartoonish punchline to inspire sports fans. When New Jersey prospector James Marshall "discovered" gold at Sutter's Mill, it was because Native Americans brought the nuggets to his attention without recognizing their commercial value. Abraham Lincoln himself, then a Whig congressman from Illinois, recognized that the war was a blatantly imperialistic exercise and denounced it in one of his earliest well-known speeches. The San Francisco 49ers drafted Ohio State pass rusher Nick Bosa with the second overall pick of the 2019 NFL Draft, but a number of left-leaning 49ers fans were not happy. After a 2-14 season in 1978, he made two moves that helped reshape the team and the NFL. The idea of the Indian reservation continued to evolve in the nations capital. (The Kansas City Chiefs may have changed their mascot from an Indian to a Wolf decades ago, but the name, chants, and symbolism are still offensive to many Native Americans.). In 1985, the 49ers selected Jerry Rice out of Mississippi Valley State. The 49ers would go on to have some success in the following years. They already have the mascot in place. And this campaign of exploitation and genocide against the 150,000 people who had originally lived in what's nowCalifornia was hardly accidental. Until 2019, when the 49ers went 133 and advanced to Super Bowl LIV, they had losing seasons every year following Harbaughs departure. Dear Abby: Why do they imply my husband is a freak? By the mid-1850s, more than 300,000 people had poured into California. The 49er represents brutal manifest destiny and wealth capture at the expense of an entire population. Technically, the San Francisco 49ers are registered as the San Francisco Forty Niners, but that definitely wouldnt fit on a football helmet. A century after the Gold Rush, the 49ers were. To his credit, current California Governor Gavin Newsom recently took one of the first steps to acknowledge the facts of history by issuing a formal apology to the states Native American tribes. Think pieces are being written on liberal and conservative outlets. Gold was first found in Northern California in January 1848, and it took about a year for the news to travel and inspire thousands of fortune seekers to head west. These conversations are part of that process. The original 49ers carried out one of the most horrific campaigns of genocide in the history of North America. Get Morning Report and other email newsletters. He would go on to say, I didnt leave the 49ers. The 49ers did their part to kill off Indian chiefs and their tribes. (In San Francisco alone, the citys population soared from a thousand residents in 1848 to 20,000 citizens just two years later.) Surely enough, the 49ers have become one of the most successful teams in the NFL. The wide receiver generated a lot of offseason chatter by expressing his displeasure regarding his contract . As you watch Super Bowl LIV, bear in mind that rooting for the Kansas City Chiefs and taking no issue with either their mascot or their fans' traditions means rooting for racism. Let's start with the 49ers named after the Americans who came to California in 1849 during the Gold Rush specifically, and more generally after the Gold Rush pioneers since the problem with their name is not as well known as the issues with the Chiefs. Sign up for writing inspiration in your email. Why Both Super Bowl Team Names Should Be Replaced, GloRilla, Ice Spice, And The Carefree Black Girl Backlash, Karol G Tells Us About Her Most Personal Album Yet, Maana Ser Bonito, And Collaborating With Shakira, The Rundown: Between Cocaine Bears And Maple Syrup Heists, Margo Martindale Is Absolutely Thriving In 2023. Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much Joey Batters, died in 1992, five years before Nick Bosa, who has helped the 49ers return to football's biggest stage, was even born. Under Edward, the franchise became a juggernaut. Also, California was still disputed territory. The area consisted of several hundred Americans; about 6,500 Californios (people of Spanish or Mexican descent); and roughly 150,000 Native Americans. The team's name is a nod to history. There are more historic parallels between the team and the historical context of its name: The 49ers were the first NFL team, and, in fact, the first major professional sports team to originate on the West Coast. There were no taxes or land rights arguments. His diverse interests are reflected in his interviews including: President Jimmy Carter (1977-1981), Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak (1999-2001), animal scientist and autism activist Temple Grandin, inventor Ern Rubik, comedian Bill Burr ("F Is for Family"), novelist James Patterson ("The President's Daughter"), epidemiologist Monica Gandhi, theoretical cosmologist Janna Levin, voice actor Rob Paulsen ("Animaniacs"), mRNA vaccine pioneer Katalin Karik, philosopher of science Vinciane Despret, actor George Takei ("Star Trek"), climatologist Michael E. Mann, Washington Gov. When the team was initially founded, there werent really any other alternate name ideas. However, it was a far cry from the dominance of the 80s and early 90s. Maybe not all the way back to 1849, but the story begins in 1946, when the 49ers were first founded as a football club. It was also the last season the family was involved with the team. The first name Karen peaked in popularity in 1965, which means that in 2020, most people named Karen are middle aged. & 2020 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. The influx of opportunists was a boon for California's economy, and. Despite its negative history, the word is regularly used by various races. Murder did the rest. "The name Chiefs on its own by itself may not be offensive, right? Harriette Cole: I don't want the neighbor's kids at my house, Ask Amy: I'm your cabin housekeeper, and you apparently have no idea what I do, Pac-12 media rights: Our (final) predictions for the revenue, media partners, expansion decisions and more. ", He added, "Let's go back to the scenario featuring African Americans. Heard its going to be chilly in Green Bay so I packed a pair of gloves. #FTTB #GoNiners #LETSGOOOO pic.twitter.com/pbhdzhUoss. That, to me, provides some hope. Redface. Southerners used the term for Black people who didn't "know their place" and coupled it with a racial slur. Tony Accardo, a.k.a. If they win it all, they will tie with the New England Patriots for the most Super Bowl victories in NFL history. Fittingly, its deeply tied to the history of the San Francisco area. It has also been a place where geopolitical conflicts have heated up, such as during the Cold War when the United States boycotted the 1980 Moscow Summer Olympics and the Soviet Union boycotted the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympics. There are more historic parallels between the team and the historical context of its name: The 49ers were the first NFL team, and, in fact, the first major professional sports team to originate on the West Coast. Again, confirming bigoted and lets be honest, Hollywood reinforced images of what the average American perceived all Indigenous people to be. Bezos, Fertitta. He pointed to "the distance it takes to travel to polling locations, the distance it takes to travel to county seats to obtain voter IDs, the ability to use a tribal ID to vote, the lack of access to transportation, the lack of access to a residential address, when those are made requirements for voting." The 49ers is the nickname for those who flocked to northern California in 1849 hoping to take advantage of the gold rush. Straight-up acts of genocide. Essentially, the question at the root of the issue boils down to this: Why is it still okay for Americans to wear redface and mock Indigenous pain in 2020? As April Moore from the Nisenan Maidu told PBS, "this gold strike brought thousands of people from every place known to man into our traditional territory. Origin and meaning The San Francisco 49ers scored a stunning upset against the top-seeded Green Bay Packers, earning themselves a shot at the NFC Championship. What was Georgias Jalen Carters role in a fatal car crash that killed his teammate? Following an 8-8 regular season in 2014, the 49ers agreed to part ways with Harbaugh. In 1995, the San Francisco 49ers became the first NFL team to win five Super Bowls. The Super Bowl is coming up, and in these days of anticipation we often get so caught up worrying about little things like What teams are playing? and Whos going to win? that we lose sight of the bigger question: Why on earth are the San Francisco 49ers called the San Francisco 49ers? The question is whether they will follow through on that. And yes, it all connects: According to legend, French prospectors were the first to bring the chewy, tangy sourdough recipe to northern California during the gold rush, and it was first popularized in San Franciscos Boudin Bakery in you guessed it 1849. At the time, they were playing in the All-America Football Conference and would end up being the first major sports franchise to play for San Francisco. The federal government, Lea added, should supply Indians there with farming tools, cloth, and livestock; assist them with housing; and secure for them intellectual, moral, and religious education. The precedent was set by a Swiss immigrant named John Sutterwho ventured to California in 1841, and was followed by others who attempted to make their fortune in the so-called Wild West. Companies are refusing to broker Redskins merchandise. When the white Californians heard the terms, they were outraged: Why reserve even a single acre for the Indians? In the end, Calfornias Indigenous population fell by 80 percent over 25 years. The white men of the Golden State exercised their homicidal liberty. Few professional organizations have the history of the 49ers. Before 1850 (when California became a state), the gold was free. The science backs me up on this. Lea noted, with some chagrin, that there was violent opposition to [the California treaties] in the legislature of that State, but he nonetheless requested their adoption by the U.S. Senate. While he was kept there, Sutter worked him hard and then fed him in troughs. This is a team that is named after a Native American position of authority, features an arrowhead on their helmets andplays at a facility called Arrowhead Stadium. The team responded . Thats what it was: a genocide. The name was embodied by the teams mascot-a gold-prospector-inspired character named Sourdough Samwho has undergone several changes to his appearance over the years. 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