The internet erupted on Thursday after ESPN host Bomani Jones appeared on camera wearing a t-shirt that a lot of folks on Twitter felt was “racist”.
The controversial clothing was designed to look just like the official Cleveland Indians t-shirt, with a very similar logo and image. There was only one difference, but it was a big one.
On Bomani’s shirt, the word “Indians” had been replaced with the word “Caucasians”.
Jones claimed that he chose to wear the shirt that day because it was clean. Nevertheless, his shirt certainly made a strong point. The word “Caucasians” was written across the front, and was accompanied by an image of a grinning white guy. While the real team logo has a feather above the face, the caucasian had a dollar sign behind his.
The image of the grinning Indian named “Chief Wahoo” has been the team’s mascot since 1932. But the image has come under increasing criticism for its cartoonish presentation. The caricature has been offensive to many Native American groups as well as other groups. Most have called for the end of its use.
Bomani had something to say about the fact the Chief Wahoo is still in use:
“I think the money sign is very helpful, because people still buy this stuff. The reason they won’t get rid of Chief Wahoo -it’s completely indefensible-is because they could still sell stuff with it.”
Twitter exploded with reactions to the shirt. Some comments were predictably negative, accusing Jones of racism. Many others, though, pointed out the irony of white people being offended by this shirt, but perfectly fine with their Indians merchandise.
Man, all this furor over Bomani Jones' "Caucasians" t-shirt. It's almost like a cartoon caricature of an entire race as a logo is offensive
— Louisa S. Pumpkins ? ?? (@LouisatheLast) April 7, 2016
Oh, and a lot of folks asked how they could one of the shirts for themselves. Here is the link to the Shelf Life website where you can get yourself a fabulous Caucasians hoodie or t-shirt.
Featured image via YouTube Screengrab.
