The Chicago Blackhawks have one of the most well-known logos in all of sports, but it continues to garner negative reactions from some fans. One of them is prominent Chicago-based rapper Vic Mensa, who slammed the team’s logo as “racist” in a series of tweets Tuesday night.
The @NHLBlackhawks need to replace this logo IMMEDIATELY. it’s racist pic.twitter.com/wld64NpzLb
— vino (@VicMensa) September 19, 2017
imagine having your people massacred and turned into a mascot…
— vino (@VicMensa) September 19, 2017
When someone pointed out to Mensa how “iconic” the Blackhawks’ logo is, he noted that’s part of the problem.
that’s y it hurts. but it gotta go https://t.co/ENrsojOT1Z
— vino (@VicMensa) September 20, 2017
This is something that’s going to keep coming up as long as the Hawks’ logo stays the same. It’s a throwback to a different time, and “imagine having your people massacred and turned into a mascot” does a pretty good job of summing up what makes so many people uncomfortable with it. The team can point out how it “honors” Native Americans, but a lot of people, including many Native Americans, don’t view it that way.
Mensa is a beloved figure in Chicago hip hop, and the Blackhawks should be trying to garner support from communities like that one. They’re alienating people with their logo, though, as we’re reminded of from comments like these.