Opposition states that mascots that reference Native Americans oppress minorities.Cullen Murphy, Chairman of the board of Trustees at Amherst College, explained that their mascot, Lord Jeff, is driving their community apart: “. . . a mascot--which, when you think about it, has only one real job, which is to unify--is driving people apart because of what it symbolizes to many in our community” (qtd. in Bidgood, “Amherst College Drops Mascot Seen As a Symbol of Oppression” par. 3). Lord Jeff has negative connotations because he gave blankets that contained smallpox to Native Americans (Bidgood, “Amherst College Drops 'Lord Jeff' as Mascot" par. 1).In other words, Murphy argues the mascot is giving a false reputation to his community because of the unjust acts of Lord Jeff. In an effort to eliminate Lord Jeff, a senior at Amherst College argued that the mascot isolates people and that it is unacceptable (Bidgood, “At College That Changed for Diversity, Some Say It's the Mascot's Turn” par. 7). The argument is that the isolated citizens are minority groups because of the Native American culture referenced. A numerous amount of sports teams claim their names respect Native Americans, but the mascots, imagery, and logos they use promote racist thoughts (“Point” par. 2). Americans today tend to believe that the Native American references are offensive. Nancy Armour, journalist for the New York Times, claims that mementos of America's past should be looked at as a form of embarrassment rather than pride (Armour par. 4).But Armour is wrong that mascots should be looked at as embarrassing. Mascots should not be looked at negatively because they encourage unity throughout a community. While some Americans believe Native American mascots are harmful to the community, they are not. Bennett Kamps, the Council of Chiefs assistant for Illinois University’s Chief Woohoo, refutes that the volunteers who impersonate the Chief unite the audience in the stands to the Chief itself. Kamps argues, “This isn't just about me representing Native Americans. It's more about me representing the symbol it's become to the University of Illinois” (qtd. in Ryan par. 25). Kamps is one of many students at Illinois advocating for the Chief symbol of the University. Likewise, Illinois junior Omar Cruz, an impersonator of the Chief, insists that the Chief has sentimental meaning to their community because fans support the Chief by dressing with feathers in their hair and wearing war paint or t-shirts that symbolize the Chief (Ryan par 42-43). To continue, the Chicago Blackhawk community is one of the largest support systems for Native American mascots. The town praises the Native American Black Hawk who defied expansion to the Midwest; the community built a 50-foot statue in his honor (Auerbach par. 4). Mascots are simply mascots; however, they may be seen negatively because citizens alter the meanings and make them what they are not. The case of the Chicago Blackhawks is an example of the overemphasis on political correctness that influences this controversy (Auerbach par. 4).Kenneth Stull, a College Social Studies Professor, added on to the statement of political correctness. Stull emphasizes, “I think that society has become so politically correct. . . Nobody intended for a school mascot to be problematic or controversial” (qtd. in Stull and Leatherman). In short, Stull explains that society has become too concerned with issues that were not planned to be problematic in the first place. Furthermore, the Washington Redskins, one of the National Football League’s teams, has also received disgust for their team name and mascot. However, owner of the Redskins, Daniel Snyder, said, “Our fans and community have always believed our name represents honor, respect, and pride” (qtd. in Cox, Clement, and Vargas par. 5).Yet some still challenge the view that mascot names have a positive connotation.