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The Cleveland Indians changing their name will prevent Native Americans from taking their own lives — this according to leaders in the community, who insist there’s a connection.
Suicide is an enormous problem among Native Americans — it’s the 2nd leading cause of death, and is especially dire among the young.
As for why the name of a baseball team affects the suicide rate — when Native Americans see non-Natives wearing sacred headdresses and mocking their people with mascots, names, antics, etc. — it screws with their heads in a big way … so says Prairie Bighorn-Blount, Executive Director of the American Indigenous Business Leaders. This, we’re told, profoundly diminishes self-esteem as well as pride, and can create a severe identity crisis.
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