The Cleveland baseball team formerly known as the "Indians" will now be known as the "Guardians." The team made the announcement today on Twitter with a video narrated by Tom Hanks.
Together, we are allā¦ pic.twitter.com/R5FnT4kv1I
ā Cleveland Indians (@Indians) July 23, 2021
The team had announced plans to change the name in December of last year, which many felt was long overdue. After the team formerly known as the Washington Redskins changed their name after years of public outcry, eyes turned to the Cleveland Indians and other professional sports teams which used Native American names and imagery as their team names. Cleveland faced particular pressure because their longtime mascot, "Chief Wahoo," was a red-faced caricature of a Native American.
The name "Guardians" struck many as odd at first glance, but the choice wasn't arbitrary. The name is inspired by large Art Deco statues on the LoraināCarnegie Bridge just outside the ballpark, known by locals as the "Guardians of Traffic."
I thought Guardians might be too esoteric and that people outside the city wouldn't get it. Seeing plenty of that now.
But the bridge that the name comes from is beautiful and right outside the ballpark. One of the best pieces of Cleveland architecture/history pic.twitter.com/8ijhd4onmrā Teddy Cahill (@tedcahill) July 23, 2021
The announcement expectedly drew divided, ideological reactions on social media, as some were pleased that the change had finally gone into effect and that the new name more directly celebrated the city, while others bemoaned the change as a result of over-enthusiastic "political correctness."
Itās a great day to be Indigenous! āš½š#NotYourMascot #ClevelandGuardians pic.twitter.com/R3TFWqVYp4
ā Cynthia Diindiisikwe Connolly (@cynconnolly) July 23, 2021
Ohio Republican does not seem to realize that the team's new name draws inspiration fromā¦ Cleveland's history and tradition.
The Guardians of Traffic are the large art deco statues that adorn the Hope Memorial Bridge that connects Cleveland's west and east sides. https://t.co/8ThFMN0agSā Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) July 23, 2021
Iām so sick of watching everyone cave to this crybaby generation. So disgraceful @Indians. This isnāt wokeā¦.itās a lack of balls. No fight in anyone anymore! Sad. https://t.co/9dlMkwvtTl
ā Aubrey Huff (@aubrey_huff) July 23, 2021
And just like that, the Indians adopt the dumbest, most pointless name in major professional sports https://t.co/r3W5UycoNV
ā Rich Lowry (@RichLowry) July 23, 2021
āYou see, thereās always been Clevelandā¦thatās the best part of our name.ā
ā¤ļø So proud of the #ClevelandGuardians! https://t.co/NaUnqO72tnā Valerie Bertinelli (@Wolfiesmom) July 23, 2021
The name change will go into effect after the 2021 season.
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Jul 23, 2021 at 11:32PM EDT
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