Ontario Judge Dismisses Case to Bar Cleveland Indians From Using Name and Logo

Rob Gilles / AP

(TORONTO) — An Ontario judge quashed a last-minute effort to attempt to bar the Cleveland Indians from using their team name and “Chief Wahoo” logo during Monday’s night playoff game in Toronto.

The legal challenge by indigenous activist Douglas Cardinal came hours before the team played the Blue Jays in Game 3 of the AL Championship Series.

The long-standing logo, which appears on some team caps and jerseys, depicts a grinning, red-faced cartoon with a feather headband.

Ontario Superior Court Justice Tom McEwen dismissed Cardinal’s application on Monday and said he would give his reasons at a later date.

Monique Jilesen, the lawyer for Cardinal, earlier told McEwen that the game could be played with spring training uniforms that don’t carry the name or “Chief Wahoo” logo.

“You could not call a team the New York Jews. Why is it OK to call a team the Cleveland Indians?” Jilesen told the judge, calling the team name and logo racist and against Ontario’s human rights code.

At least 27 lawyers representing the Cleveland Indians, Major League Baseball and others, including the plaintiffs, attended the hearing, which was moved to a larger court room to accommodate the crowd.

MLB said it “appreciates the concerns” of those who find the name and logo “offensive.”

“We would welcome a thoughtful and inclusive dialogue to address these concerns outside the context of litigation,” the league said in a statement. “Given the demands for completing the League Championship Series in a timely manner, MLB will defend Cleveland’s right to use their name that has been in existence for more than 100 years.”

The Indians dropped Wahoo as their primary logo two years ago, switching to a block “C”, and reduced the logo’s visibility. However, one of the caps the Indians wear at home has the “Wahoo” logo on its front and Cleveland’s jerseys remain adorned with the Wahoo logo on one sleeve.

Cardinal’s lawyers asked the court to bar the usage of the name and logo by the team, MLB and Toronto team owner Rogers Communications, which rebroadcasts the TBS game in Canada.

Cardinal believes the team shouldn’t be allowed to wear their regular jerseys, the logo shouldn’t be broadcast and the team should be referred to as “the Cleveland team.”

Jilesen said the club was informed of this Sunday, and there was no attempt to stop the game.

“It’s quite obviously a derogatory, cartoonish representation of an indigenous person,” said Michael Swinwood, another of Cardinal’s lawyers, said in a phone interview. “The whole concept of how it demeans native people is essentially his concern.”

Swinwood acknowledged the legal challenge is a high-profile opportunity to bring awareness to the racism aboriginal people face in North America.

Kent Thomson, a lawyer for Rogers, told the judge that Rogers would have to black out the game in Canada because they can’t control what TBS shows during the game.

“It would punish millions and millions of Canadians, Blue Jays fans, and owners of bars and restaurants across the country,” Thomson said.

He said the case was sprung on them late Friday night and noted that Cardinal won’t even be watching the game because he’s in China.

Markus Koehnen, a lawyer for MLB, said it would be absurd for an Ontario court judge to order a major league team to alter its uninform. He noted that Andrew Miller was acquired during the season and doesn’t even have a Cleveland spring training uniform.

“This is very, very unusual. A superior court judge telling a MLB team to find another uniform,” he said.

Indians spokesman Curtis Dansburg said the team is focused on the playoffs and “will not comment any further on matters that distract from our pursuit on the field.”

Mark Shapiro, a former Cleveland Indians president and current Blue Jays president, has promoted use of the other logo, the simple C. He said last week the Wahoo logo “personally bothered” him but said the people of Cleveland thought differently. Shapiro was asked about it after Blue Jays broadcaster Jerry Howarth said he refuses to use the team name after getting a letter from an aboriginal person saying such terms were deeply offensive.

“We’re just happy that all the millions of fans across Canada will still be able to watch the game,” Shapiro said after the judge’s ruling.

Cleveland first baseman Mike Napoli said a lot of people might be offended by things in today’s world.

“I’m pretty sure it’s not a reason to offend anybody,” he said. “They’ve been the Indians for a long time.”

TIME

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