The Chicago Blackhawks have no plans to change the name of the team.
Team representatives told the Chicago Sun-Times on Tuesday the name celebrated the life of Black Hawk of Illinois’s Sac and Fox Nation, and the club plans to work to raise awareness regarding Native American culture.
“We recognize there is a fine line between respect and disrespect, and we commend other teams for their willingness to engage in that conversation,” the Blackhawks said in a statement. “Moving forward, we are committed to raising the bar even higher to expand awareness of Black Hawk and the important contributions of all Native American people.”
Pressure has grown on several sports teams in the United States to reconsider their names, logos, and branding following a nationwide reckoning with racial injustice and police brutality sparked by the death of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement.
Last week, Washington Redskins officials announced they would conduct a review of the team’s name. The Cleveland Indians announced officials are doing the same.
President Trump, who before he was president criticized then-President Barack Obama focusing on a name of a sports team instead of “far bigger problems,” said naming a professional sports organization after Native Americans is a sign of “strength.”
“They name teams out of STRENGTH, not weakness, but now the Washington Redskins & Cleveland Indians, two fabled sports franchises, look like they are going to be changing their names in order to be politically correct,” Trump tweeted Tuesday. “Indians, like Elizabeth Warren, must be very angry right now!”
