Edited by Azizi Powell
This post provides examples of twitter group names and terms used for the so-called American militia who began occupying an Oregon federal building on January 2, 2016. Cultural explanations of those terms are also included in this post.
Three additional tweets about this armed occupation are also included in this post's Addendum.
The content of this post is presented for cultural, folkloric, sociological, and political purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.
Disclaimer:
This post is not meant to suggest that only Black commenters use "Y'all Qaeda", "Vanilla Isis", "YeeHawd" and/or similar derisive names and terms to refer to the Oregon militants and/or other persons with the same or similar views. From the pictorial icons on twitter, it appears that Black commenters and non-Black commenters have used these names and terms.
****
BACKGROUND
From http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2016/01/armed-militants-take-over-a-federal-building-in-oregon-and-social-media-cries-foul
Oregon Under Attack
Armed Militants Take Over a Federal Building in Oregon, and Social Media Cries Foul
The lack of federal and media response has prompted cries of hypocrisy and racism. by Rachel Handler, January 3, 2016
"On Saturday night, a group of armed militants broke into and occupied a federal building near Burns, Oregon, declaring their intent to break free of the “tyranny” of the U.S. government and encouraging likeminded folks from around the country to “bring your arms” and join the movement.
The occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, which was closed for the weekend but serves as the remote headquarters of the Federal Bureau of Land Management, followed a protest that included roughly 300 marchers, according to The Oregonian. The protestors took issue with the prosecution of two local ranchers, Dwight Hammond Jr. and his son Steven, who are due to report to jail Monday for igniting fires that spread to government lands (the two reportedly set the fires in the early aughts to cover up illegal deer-poaching on government property)."...
In contrast to previous peaceful protests in Ferguson and Baltimore—where police deployed tear gas against protesters and called in the National Guard—“not a police officer was visible” during the rally or the subsequent occupation, according to The Oregonian, nor has the federal government responded, despite the men’s avowal to kill for the cause if necessary. That disparity hasn’t gone unnoticed by social media, either, where users have adopted the hashtag #OregonUnderAttack and made the story less about the demands of the militia and more about the vastly different official response thus far to white protestors"...
****
From http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/yall-qaeda-vanilla-isis_568a3421e4b06fa68882bb6d Vanilla ISIS & Y'All Qaeda: Oregon Gunmen Mocked On Social Media
Self-styled militia comes under a different type of fire.
by Ed Mazza, 01/04/2016 05:14 am ET
"The gunmen who have seized a federal building in Oregon claim they're patriots.
But on social media, many are calling the self-styled "militia" terrorists -- and mocking the group that has taken over the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge headquarters with derisive nicknames.
Some are calling them Y'All Qaeda"
****
From http://www.albawaba.com/loop/th-internet-has-figured-out-whose-behind-genius-yallqaeda-reponse-oregon-788658
Th [sic] Internet has figured out whose behind the genius #YallQaeda response to Oregon
Published January 3rd, 2016 - 21:40 GMT via SyndiGate.info
We're sorry to keep on reporting about Oregon and the glorious Twitter response to come out of it. But someone needs to acknowledge the genius of #YallQaeda and its subsequent spawn, #YeeHawd.
It's only been a few hours since social media users began using the hashtags to describe the militiamen occupying a federal building in Oregon, and the Internet is losing its mind over the irony. And rightly so.
Some 150 gun-toting protesters began occupying Malheur National Wildlife Refuge Sunday in what they say is support of two local ranchers' ongoing legal dispute. Social media users have wondered why this isn't being called a terror incident and musing about how much different it would be if the perpetrators were black or Muslim.
Of course, this also very serious discussion about rhetoric in the media—one that has raised legitimate questions of why most mainstream media organizations and law enforcement are reinforcing such obvious double standards. That's exactly what makes #Yeehawd such a great finisher....
The man behind the phrase [Yall Qaeda] appears to be sports reporter and TV journalist Jason Marks, who says he first used the hashtag in 2011 to refer to "fringe fans" of the Southeastern Conference, or SEC, a college athletic conference with members hailing mostly from the American South. Here's the tweet.
Jason Marks
@OnTheMarksRadio Mike Slive wants to make the bump rule history...sorry #YALLQaeda, you'll have to get Saban on something else."
Back then it didn't gain much speed. But in the last few hours its taken on a new, arguably better serving, life of its own as the sharlpy [sic] satiric answer to a pretty pitiful media and law enforcement response to the Oregon siege. And while that occupation is still alive and kicking, at least we have #YallQaeda, and its story of origin."...
-snip-
Pancocojams Editor:
The group names "Y'all Qaeda" (Yall Qaeda), "VanillaIsis", and the terms "YeeHawd", "Infantada", "YokelHaram" and more are being used on twitter to mock the so-called "American militants" and self-described "American patriots" who took over an Oregon federal building on January 2, 2016. These terms convey the view that the intolerance and narrow-mindedness of those people, and, more generally, American Christian fundamentalists and/or American Republicans are considered to be parallel to the intolerance and narrow-mindedness of the Middle-Eastern terrorist groups the Taliban, Al-Queda, and Isis. “American Taliban” and “teahadist” are two earlier referents for the same American groups and/or population/s referred to by the derisive names "Y'all Qaeda", "VanillaIsis", and more.
****
EXAMPLES
These featured tweets are given in no particular order with their source article or twitter page noted. I've assigned numbers to these tweets for referencing purposes only. Those numbers correspond to the "Explanation" section that is found below.
From http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/yall-qaeda-vanilla-isis_568a3421e4b06fa68882bb6d
Example #1:
Colin Miner @cominer
"Whomever came up with #YallQaeda to describe the Oregon militia, I take my hat off to you. And then put it back on and take it off again."
12:24 PM - 3 Jan 2016
**
Example #2:
PatOndabak @PatOndabak
"Whoever coined the hashtag #YallQaeda is brilliant. Redneck terrorism has descended on Oregon."
12:32 PM - 3 Jan 2016
**
Example #3:
Brandon Friedman
@BFriedmanDC
"#YallQaeda makes no sense to me because the militia people are from the West and Upper Midwest, not the South. Have to go with #VanillaISIS."
6:00 PM - 3 Jan 2016
****
From http://www.rawstory.com/2016/01/yall-qaeda-twitter-users-mock-oregon-right-wing-militia-action-and-its-awesome/
‘Y’all Qaeda’: Twitter users mock Oregon right-wing militia action — and it’s awesome
David Ferguson, 03 Jan 2016
Example #4:
David Roberts
@drvox
"Roundup:
#YallQueda
#YeeHawd
#VanillaISIS
#YokelHaram
#CowTippingTerrorists
#FailQueda
#Infantada
#WhiteSIS
#SaturdayNightTreason"
More?
5:23 PM - 3 Jan 2016
**
Example #5:
Brienne of Snarth
@femme_esq
"#YallQaeda follows a strict interpretation of Shania law."
**
Example #6:
W. Kamau Bell Verified account
@wkamaubell
"Dumb dumb dumb da da dumb dumb.
Dumb dumb dumb dumb da da dumb dumb #VanillaIsis baby"
**
From http://www.albawaba.com/loop/th-internet-has-figured-out-whose-behind-genius-yallqaeda-reponse-oregon-788658 Th Internet has figured out whose behind the genius #YallQaeda response to Oregon, Published January 3rd, 2016 via SyndiGate.info
Example #7:
#FinnAwakens
"@pfunk1130 Oh, waitaminute!!!! We have #YallQaeda AND #YeeHawdists?!?!?! Y'all tew much, Twitter...y'all TEW MUCH!!!!"
**
Example #8:
From http://www.businessinsider.com/social-media-mocking-oregon-militia-by-calling-them-yallqaeda-and-vanillaisis-2016-1 People are mocking the Oregon 'militia' on social media by calling them 'YallQaeda' and 'VanillaISIS' by Harrison Jacobs
ⓉⒶⒷ (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧
@tabatkins
"So some religious militants took over some territory, threaten violence, and are calling for like-minded believers to join them. #YallQaeda"
**
Example #9:
John Hulsey @JohnHulsey
"#YallQaeda waging #YeeHawd on America and we're still calling it a "peaceful protest."
It's domestic terrorism and we need to shut it down."
11:58 AM - 3 Jan 2016
**
Example #10:
Kevin M. Kruse @KevinMKruse
"Some other great suggestions from my mentions: #YokelHaram #YeeHawdists #VanillaISIS #Talibundy"
2:47 PM - 3 Jan 2016
****
CULTURAL EXPLANATIONS FOR SOME OF THE ABOVE NAMES/TERMS
1. Y'all Qaeda (Yall Qaeda) - a play on the words "y'all" and the Middle Eastern terrorist group "Al-Qaeda".
Y'all is an informal variant of the words "you all". Y'all is usually associated with poor and working class people, particularly from the Southern region of the USA, although it is used elsewhere by Black and non-Black people.
A drawing of a fake poster [billboard] on Y'all Qaeda's twitter page distinguishes between "Y'all Qaeda" and "Them Qaeda" (the Middle Eastern terrorist group". However, the people using the referent "Y'all Qaeda" don't associate that group with all Americans (people in the USA)- just the people who (they believe) are acting like American Taliban.
Here are three selected tweets which were published prior to the Oregon occupation that include the mocking group name "Y'all Qaeda":
[from Y'all Qaeda twitter page]:
Thomas Alascio @headhunter69 , 29 Nov 2015
Ted Cruz once again demonstrating that he is a proud card carrying member of Y'all Qaeda. http://ift.tt/1YCbhUx
Ted Cruz Describes Alleged Planned Parenthood Shooter As ‘Transgendered Leftist Activist’
Nov 29, 2015 Think Progress.org
**
"Mackeith Jones @MackeithJones , 29 Nov 2015
I will, from this day forward, refer to right wingers/republicans as "Y'all Qaeda" because let's be honest. That's what they are."
**
"Jake Turk @71djt, 2 Dec 2015
Jake Turk Retweeted Zaibatsu News Ⓜ️
I'll give Dubya that much. He did at least go through the motions, and it pissed off a lot of the Y'all-Qaeda base.
Jake Turk added,
Embedded image permalink
Zaibatsu News Ⓜ️ @ZaibatsuNews Unlike The GOP Presidential Field, Former Pres. G.W. Bush Separated Islam From Terrorism http://mm4a.org/1N3b5Fz "
**
2. The use of the term "Y'all Qaeda" and the reference to "redneck terrorism" reflect long held negative attitudes in the United States toward poor people living in rural areas (living in the country, meaning the opposite of the city).
Definition for "redneck" from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/redneck
"a white person who lives in a small town or in the country especially in the southern U.S., who typically has a working-class job, and who is seen by others as being uneducated and having opinions and attitudes that are offensive"
**
3. VanillaISIS (VanillaIsis)- a play on the word "vanilla" meaning "white" and the acronym ISIS, the Middle Eastern terrorist group
The derisive group name "VanillaIsis" is a variant form of the name "WhiteIsis" which television host Trevor Noah and a Muslim man portraying a senior correspondent used to describe Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump in an episode of Noah's television program The Daily Show http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/presidential-races/262599-trevor-noah-trump-is-white-isis
**
4. "YeeHawd" (yeehawdist) is a play on words on the Arabic term "jihad" (jihadist) as well as the American words "Hee Haw".
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jihad
"Jihad... is an Islamic term referring to the religious duty of Muslims to maintain the religion. In Arabic, the word jihād is a noun meaning the act of "striving, applying oneself, struggling, persevering"...
Muslims and scholars do not all agree on its definition. Many observers—both Muslim[6] and non-Muslim[7]—as well as the Dictionary of Islam,[3] talk of jihad having two meanings: an inner spiritual struggle (the "greater jihad"), and an outer physical struggle against the enemies of Islam (the "lesser jihad")[3][8] which may take a violent or non-violent form.[1][9] Jihad is often translated as "Holy War",[10][11][12] although this term is controversial”...
-snip-
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hee_Haw
"Yeehaw or Yee-haw is an interjection expressing joy or exuberance and is stereotypically associated with Cowboys in various portrayals of the American Old West in the Western genre of film, television, radio, and literature in the 20th Century."
-snip-
Reflecting its use as the title of that influential television series, the term "Yee-haw" is now closely associated with country people from the American West as well as in other regions of the USA. "Yee Haw" is mostly considered a put-down for those people.
**
YokelHaram - is a play on the English word "Yokel" and the Arabic word "haram" and/or "harem".
Yokel
From http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/yokel
"used as an insulting word for a person who lives in a small town or in the country far away from cities and is regarded as stupid"
-snip-
Haram
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masjid_al-Haram
"The Masjid al-Ḥarām (Arabic: المسجد الحرام, literally "the sacred mosque"), also called the Sacred Mosque, and the Grand Mosque[2] or Great Mosque of Mecca, is the largest mosque in the world and surrounds Islam's holiest place, the Kaaba,[3] in the city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Muslims face in the Qibla (direction of the Kaaba) while performing Salat (obligatory daily prayers)."
-snip-
From http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/harem
"Harem
"a house or part of a house in which the women of a Muslim household live
the women who live in a harem in a Muslim household
a group of women who are associated with one man"
-snip-
Thanks to commenter slam2011 for this likely source for the "Haram" part of the derisive name "Yokelharam": slam2011January 6, 2016 at 5:03 AM
"Yokelharam may reference 'Procul Harum'? a 60s English band whose biggest hit was 'A Whiter Shade of Pale'."...
Read that full comment below.
**
CowTippingTerrorists - reflects negative attitudes toward rural people (cowboys); reflects the view that the Oregon occupiers of the federal building are domestic terrorist. [Also, see the name "SaturdayNightTreason" in that list.
**
#FailQueda - reflects negative opinions regarding the views and the actions taken by the Oregon occupiers
**
#Infantada - a play on the English word "infant" (reflecting a very low opinion about those adults' actions) and a play on the Arabic word "intifada"
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intifada
"Intifada (انتفاضة intifāḍah) is an Arabic word literally meaning, as a noun, "tremor", "shivering", "shuddering".[1][2] It is derived from an Arabic term nafada meaning "to shake", "shake off", "get rid of",[1] as a dog might shrug off water, or as one might shake off sleep,[3] or dirt from one's sandals,[4] and is a key concept in contemporary Arabic usage referring to a legitimate uprising against oppression.[5] It is often rendered into English as "uprising", "resistance", or "rebellion"."
**
Example #5:
Shania law - a play on the Arabic term "sharia law" and probably also a play on the name of Canadian country music singer and songwriter Shania Twain who is considered to be "the Queen of Country Pop" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shania_Twain
sharia law
From http://www.thefreedictionary.com/sharia+law
"the code of law derived from the Koran and from the teachings and example of Mohammed; "sharia is only applicable to Muslims"; "under Islamic law there is no separation of church and state""
**
Example #6
Read the entry for Example #3.
**
Example #7:
Y'all Qaeda and Yeehawdist - Read the first entry for Y'all Qaeda and the entry for "Yeehaw" in #4.
**
Example #8:
Read the first entry for Y'all Qaeda.
**
Example #9:
Read the first entry for Y'all Qaeda and the entry for "Yeehaw" in #4.
**
Example #10:
Talibundy = a referent for the Oregon militants and others who share their beliefs. That referent is made by combining the beginning of the word "Taliban" with the last name "Bundy".
Cattle rancher Cliven Bundy and sons were part of an armed standoff April 5, 2014 with the United States Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and cattle rancher Cliven Bundy, over unpaid grazing fees on federally owned land in southeastern Nevada.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bundy_standoff
Cliven's son Ammon Bundy appears to be a key spokesperson for the people who are occupying the Oregon federal building. http://abcnews.go.com/US/militia-family-cliven-bundy-federal-land-national-wildlife/story?id=36064909
****
ADDENDUM
Selected tweets about this occupation from http://www.rawstory.com/2016/01/yall-qaeda-twitter-users-mock-oregon-right-wing-militia-action-and-its-awesome/
"‘Y’all Qaeda’: Twitter users mock Oregon right-wing militia action — and it’s awesome" by David Ferguson03 Jan 2016
Bernie Sanders @BernSanders2016
"And people say white privilege doesn't exist. Smh" #OregonUnderAttack
4:21 PM - 3 Jan 2016
-snip-
Smh = "shake my head" (This gesture can mean exasperation, and/or amazement, and/or disdain etc.)
**
Cenk Uygur
@cenkuygur
"Let's be clear: If Muslims had seized a federal building, they'd all be dead by now. #whiteprivilege #OregonUnderAttack"
5:02 PM - 3 Jan 2016
**
Danielle Muscato
@daniellemuscato
"News flash: If you take over a gov't bldg with guns and make a "goodbye" video, you are terrorists, not a "militia." #OregonUnderAttack
****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
Showing posts with label group names. Show all posts
Showing posts with label group names. Show all posts
Monday, January 4, 2016
Thursday, November 7, 2013
Uniform Colors & Miscellaneous Names Of Negro League Teams
Edited by Azizi Powell
This post is part of an ongoing series on group names of Negro League baseball teams and non-White American traveling (barnstorming) baseball teams.
This post presents a list of names of Negro League or traveling baseball teams that include a reference to the color of a portion of their uniform or other miscellaneous names for those teams.
These names are posted in relative alphabetical order. The home state for the team is given in brackets after the team name. If the team was a traveling team, that information is provided in brackets. Also, in some cases, brief editorial comments are posted below the group name.
In a few cases, a brief comment and a hyperlink are given for more information about a particular team.
The content of this post is presented for historical, cultural, and educational value.
It's my position that some of the names of these Negro League baseball teams provide information about the perspectives of Black people during the years that those teams were active.
Some of these group names that are featured in this post may also be included in other posts in this series.
Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Negro_league_baseball for information about the history of The Negro League Baseball
All copyrights remain with their owners.
DISCLAIMER:
I know very little about baseball or that sport's history. Corrections and additions are very welcome.
****
UNIFORM COLORS AND MISCELLANEOUS NAMES OF NEGRO LEAGUE BASEBALL TEAMS
Source of team names: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Negro_league_baseball_teams
UNIFORM COLORS
Note: I may be wrong in my assumption that these team names refer to the teams' uniforms (including the color of socks or caps that the team wore).
Baltimore Black Sox [Maryland]
**
Boston Blues [Massachusetts]
**
Homestead Grays [Pennsylvania]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homestead_Grays
"The Homestead Grays (also known as Washington Grays or Washington Homestead Grays) were a professional baseball team that played in the Negro leagues in the United States. The team was formed in 1912 by Cumberland Posey, and would remain in continuous operation for 38 seasons. The team was originally based in Homestead, Pennsylvania, adjacent to Pittsburgh. By the 1920s with increasing popularity in the Pittsburgh region, the team retained the name "Homestead" but crossed the Monongahela River to play all home games in Pittsburgh, at the Pittsburgh Pirates' home Forbes Field and the Pittsburgh Crawfords' home Greenlee Field. From 1940 until 1942, the Grays played half of their home games in Washington, D.C., while remaining in Pittsburgh for all other home stands.[1] As attendance at their games in the nation's capital grew, by 1943 the Grays were playing more than two-thirds of their home games in Washington.[2]
The Grays grew out of an earlier industrial team. In 1900, a group of African-American players had joined together to form the Germantown (PA) Blue Ribbons, an industrial league team. For ten years, the Blue Ribbons fielded a team every season and played some of the best sandlot teams in the area. In 1910, the managers of the team retired. The players reorganized the team and named themselves the Murdock Grays. In 1912, they became the Homestead Grays, the name they retained for the remainder of the franchise's history."
-snip-
I admit to quoting a lengthy portion of that article because my adopted city is Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
I'm not sure why that team adopted the name "Grays". Perhaps it had nothing to do with the team's uniform colors. I recall owning a replica Homestead Gray's shirt, and that shirt wasn't gray. Maybe that color was chosen because "gray" is somewhat close to the color of dirt in sandlots where the games were played.
**
Jacksonville Red Caps [Florida]
**
Los Angeles White Sox [California]
**
Louisville Black Caps [Kentucky]
**
Louisville White Sox[Kentucky]
**
Memphis Red Sox [Tennessee]
**
Montgomery Grey Sox [Alabama]
**
Washington-Homestead Grays [District of Columbia]
[Read information above about the Homestead Grays]
****
MISCELLANEOUS NAMES
CLOWNS
Cincinnati Clowns [Ohio]
Ethiopian Clowns [Ohio]
and
Indianapolis Clowns [Indiana]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indianapolis_Clowns
"The Indianapolis Clowns were a professional baseball team in the Negro American League. They began play as the independent Ethiopian Clowns, joined the league as the Cincinnati Clowns and, after a couple of years, relocated to Indianapolis...
The Ethiopian Clowns were an independent barnstorming baseball team. There is evidence indicating that the team was founded in Miami, Florida, in 1935 or 1936 by Hunter Campbell and bootlegger Johnny Pierce.[1]
Syd Pollock was instrumental in promoting and popularizing the Clowns and developed them into a nationally-known combination of show business and baseball that earned them the designation as the Harlem Globetrotters of baseball.
-snip-
Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/11/racial-and-ethnic-referents-in-group.html for a list of Negro League teams & traveling teams whose name includes a racial reference such as that of the Ethiopian Clowns.
The Wikepedia article about the Harlem Globetrotters http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harlem_Globetrotters describes them as "an exhibition basketball team that combines athleticism, theater, and comedy...the genesis of the Globetrotters took place on the south side of Chicago, Illinois, in the 1920s... When the [Chicago] Savoy Ballroom opened in November 1927, one of the premier attractions was the Savoy Big Five, a basketball team that played exhibitions before dances[In 1928] several players led by Tommy Brookins formed a team called the "Globe Trotters" that toured Southern Illinois that spring. Abe Saperstein became involved with the team, though exactly to what extent is unclear. In any event, by 1929 Saperstein was touring Illinois and Iowa with his basketball team called the "New York Harlem Globe Trotters." Saperstein decided to pick Harlem as their home city, since Harlem was considered the center of African-American culture at the time and an out-of-town team name would give the team more of a mystique."
****
OTHER MISCELLANEOUS TEAM NAMES
Chattanooga Choo-Choos [Tennessee]
-snip-
This team name was undoubtedly given as homage to the popular song with that title.
**
Chicago Unions [Illinois]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leland_Giants
"The Chicago Unions were a professional, black baseball team that played in the late 19th century, prior to the formation of the Negro Leagues.
During 1901 and 1902, Frank Leland created the Chicago Union Giants by hiring many players from the Chicago Unions and Columbia Giants. The Union Giants "were recognized as the top team in the West, but lost a challenge playoff to the Algona Brownies in 1903 for the western championship" (Riley 168). The Union Giants were renamed Leland Giants in 1905."
-snip-
The name "union" is also found in the name of the Chicago train stations. http://www.unionstationmp.com/history2/ indicates that the "Chicago Union Station opened in 1925. It replaced the Union Depot that had been built on essentially the same site in 1882."
**
Cincinnati Buckeyes [Ohio]
Click “Origin of the Buckeye Name” for information about that word "buckeye".
Because “buckeye” nuts are brown, this name also could have been a coded reference to the fact that the Cincinnati Buckeyes was a Black team. However, given the wide use of the term “buckeyes” as a referent for all Ohioans, I think that racial meaning was secondary at best.
**
Dayton Marcos [Ohio]
**
Hilldale Daisies [Pennsylvania]
**
Louisville Fall City [Kentucky]
**
Newark Dodgers [New Jersey]
-snip-
This team's name was probably chosen because of the "Brooklyn Dodgers" baseball team.
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Brooklyn_Dodgers
"The Brooklyn Dodgers were an American baseball team that was active in the major leagues from 1884 until 1957, after which it moved to Los Angeles, where it continued its history as the Los Angeles Dodgers. The team's name derived from the reputed skill of Brooklyn residents at evading the city's trolley street cars. The Dodgers played in two stadiums in South Brooklyn, each named Washington Park, and at Eastern Park in the neighborhood of Brownsville before moving to Ebbets Field in the neighborhood of Flatbush in 1913. The team is noted for signing Jackie Robinson in 1947 as the first black player in the modern major leagues.[1]"
"
**
Portland Rosebuds [Oregon]
**
Toledo Crawfords [Ohio]
**
Toledo Rays [Ohio]
**
Washington Pilots [District of Columbia]
-snip-
This name may refer to the team's speed and ability to navigate their plays through any obstcles.
Since a flight pilot is a high status profession, that team name could also have been included in this post to this series:
http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/11/power-other-high-status-references-in.html "Power & Other High Status References In Negro League Team Names"
****
Thanks to the authors of the above linked Wikipedia page that provides a complete list of names of Negro League teams.
Thanks to all those who were members of those teams.
Thank you for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
This post is part of an ongoing series on group names of Negro League baseball teams and non-White American traveling (barnstorming) baseball teams.
This post presents a list of names of Negro League or traveling baseball teams that include a reference to the color of a portion of their uniform or other miscellaneous names for those teams.
These names are posted in relative alphabetical order. The home state for the team is given in brackets after the team name. If the team was a traveling team, that information is provided in brackets. Also, in some cases, brief editorial comments are posted below the group name.
In a few cases, a brief comment and a hyperlink are given for more information about a particular team.
The content of this post is presented for historical, cultural, and educational value.
It's my position that some of the names of these Negro League baseball teams provide information about the perspectives of Black people during the years that those teams were active.
Some of these group names that are featured in this post may also be included in other posts in this series.
Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Negro_league_baseball for information about the history of The Negro League Baseball
All copyrights remain with their owners.
DISCLAIMER:
I know very little about baseball or that sport's history. Corrections and additions are very welcome.
****
UNIFORM COLORS AND MISCELLANEOUS NAMES OF NEGRO LEAGUE BASEBALL TEAMS
Source of team names: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Negro_league_baseball_teams
UNIFORM COLORS
Note: I may be wrong in my assumption that these team names refer to the teams' uniforms (including the color of socks or caps that the team wore).
Baltimore Black Sox [Maryland]
**
Boston Blues [Massachusetts]
**
Homestead Grays [Pennsylvania]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homestead_Grays
"The Homestead Grays (also known as Washington Grays or Washington Homestead Grays) were a professional baseball team that played in the Negro leagues in the United States. The team was formed in 1912 by Cumberland Posey, and would remain in continuous operation for 38 seasons. The team was originally based in Homestead, Pennsylvania, adjacent to Pittsburgh. By the 1920s with increasing popularity in the Pittsburgh region, the team retained the name "Homestead" but crossed the Monongahela River to play all home games in Pittsburgh, at the Pittsburgh Pirates' home Forbes Field and the Pittsburgh Crawfords' home Greenlee Field. From 1940 until 1942, the Grays played half of their home games in Washington, D.C., while remaining in Pittsburgh for all other home stands.[1] As attendance at their games in the nation's capital grew, by 1943 the Grays were playing more than two-thirds of their home games in Washington.[2]
The Grays grew out of an earlier industrial team. In 1900, a group of African-American players had joined together to form the Germantown (PA) Blue Ribbons, an industrial league team. For ten years, the Blue Ribbons fielded a team every season and played some of the best sandlot teams in the area. In 1910, the managers of the team retired. The players reorganized the team and named themselves the Murdock Grays. In 1912, they became the Homestead Grays, the name they retained for the remainder of the franchise's history."
-snip-
I admit to quoting a lengthy portion of that article because my adopted city is Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
I'm not sure why that team adopted the name "Grays". Perhaps it had nothing to do with the team's uniform colors. I recall owning a replica Homestead Gray's shirt, and that shirt wasn't gray. Maybe that color was chosen because "gray" is somewhat close to the color of dirt in sandlots where the games were played.
**
Jacksonville Red Caps [Florida]
**
Los Angeles White Sox [California]
**
Louisville Black Caps [Kentucky]
**
Louisville White Sox[Kentucky]
**
Memphis Red Sox [Tennessee]
**
Montgomery Grey Sox [Alabama]
**
Washington-Homestead Grays [District of Columbia]
[Read information above about the Homestead Grays]
****
MISCELLANEOUS NAMES
CLOWNS
Cincinnati Clowns [Ohio]
Ethiopian Clowns [Ohio]
and
Indianapolis Clowns [Indiana]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indianapolis_Clowns
"The Indianapolis Clowns were a professional baseball team in the Negro American League. They began play as the independent Ethiopian Clowns, joined the league as the Cincinnati Clowns and, after a couple of years, relocated to Indianapolis...
The Ethiopian Clowns were an independent barnstorming baseball team. There is evidence indicating that the team was founded in Miami, Florida, in 1935 or 1936 by Hunter Campbell and bootlegger Johnny Pierce.[1]
Syd Pollock was instrumental in promoting and popularizing the Clowns and developed them into a nationally-known combination of show business and baseball that earned them the designation as the Harlem Globetrotters of baseball.
-snip-
Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/11/racial-and-ethnic-referents-in-group.html for a list of Negro League teams & traveling teams whose name includes a racial reference such as that of the Ethiopian Clowns.
The Wikepedia article about the Harlem Globetrotters http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harlem_Globetrotters describes them as "an exhibition basketball team that combines athleticism, theater, and comedy...the genesis of the Globetrotters took place on the south side of Chicago, Illinois, in the 1920s... When the [Chicago] Savoy Ballroom opened in November 1927, one of the premier attractions was the Savoy Big Five, a basketball team that played exhibitions before dances[In 1928] several players led by Tommy Brookins formed a team called the "Globe Trotters" that toured Southern Illinois that spring. Abe Saperstein became involved with the team, though exactly to what extent is unclear. In any event, by 1929 Saperstein was touring Illinois and Iowa with his basketball team called the "New York Harlem Globe Trotters." Saperstein decided to pick Harlem as their home city, since Harlem was considered the center of African-American culture at the time and an out-of-town team name would give the team more of a mystique."
****
OTHER MISCELLANEOUS TEAM NAMES
Chattanooga Choo-Choos [Tennessee]
-snip-
This team name was undoubtedly given as homage to the popular song with that title.
**
Chicago Unions [Illinois]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leland_Giants
"The Chicago Unions were a professional, black baseball team that played in the late 19th century, prior to the formation of the Negro Leagues.
During 1901 and 1902, Frank Leland created the Chicago Union Giants by hiring many players from the Chicago Unions and Columbia Giants. The Union Giants "were recognized as the top team in the West, but lost a challenge playoff to the Algona Brownies in 1903 for the western championship" (Riley 168). The Union Giants were renamed Leland Giants in 1905."
-snip-
The name "union" is also found in the name of the Chicago train stations. http://www.unionstationmp.com/history2/ indicates that the "Chicago Union Station opened in 1925. It replaced the Union Depot that had been built on essentially the same site in 1882."
**
Cincinnati Buckeyes [Ohio]
Click “Origin of the Buckeye Name” for information about that word "buckeye".
Because “buckeye” nuts are brown, this name also could have been a coded reference to the fact that the Cincinnati Buckeyes was a Black team. However, given the wide use of the term “buckeyes” as a referent for all Ohioans, I think that racial meaning was secondary at best.
**
Dayton Marcos [Ohio]
**
Hilldale Daisies [Pennsylvania]
**
Louisville Fall City [Kentucky]
**
Newark Dodgers [New Jersey]
-snip-
This team's name was probably chosen because of the "Brooklyn Dodgers" baseball team.
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Brooklyn_Dodgers
"The Brooklyn Dodgers were an American baseball team that was active in the major leagues from 1884 until 1957, after which it moved to Los Angeles, where it continued its history as the Los Angeles Dodgers. The team's name derived from the reputed skill of Brooklyn residents at evading the city's trolley street cars. The Dodgers played in two stadiums in South Brooklyn, each named Washington Park, and at Eastern Park in the neighborhood of Brownsville before moving to Ebbets Field in the neighborhood of Flatbush in 1913. The team is noted for signing Jackie Robinson in 1947 as the first black player in the modern major leagues.[1]"
"
**
Portland Rosebuds [Oregon]
**
Toledo Crawfords [Ohio]
**
Toledo Rays [Ohio]
**
Washington Pilots [District of Columbia]
-snip-
This name may refer to the team's speed and ability to navigate their plays through any obstcles.
Since a flight pilot is a high status profession, that team name could also have been included in this post to this series:
http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/11/power-other-high-status-references-in.html "Power & Other High Status References In Negro League Team Names"
****
Thanks to the authors of the above linked Wikipedia page that provides a complete list of names of Negro League teams.
Thanks to all those who were members of those teams.
Thank you for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
Animals & Bird References In The Group Names Of Negro League Baseball Teams
Edited by Azizi Powell
This post is part of an ongoing series on group names of Negro League baseball teams and non-White American traveling (barnstorming) baseball teams.
This post presents a list of names of Negro League or traveling baseball teams that include a reference to animals, birds, or other living creatures.
These names are posted in relative alphabetical order under the broad sub-category of "Animals", "Birds" and "Other Living Creatures".
The home state for the team is given in brackets after the team name. If the team was a traveling team, that information is provided in brackets. Also, in some cases, brief editorial comments are posted below the group name.
In a few cases, a brief comment and a hyperlink are given for more information about a particular team.
The content of this post is presented for historical, cultural, and educational value.
It's my position that some of the names of these Negro League baseball teams provide information about the perspectives of Black people during the years that those teams were active.
Some of these group names may also be included in other posts in this series.
Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Negro_league_baseball for information about the history of The Negro League Baseball
All copyrights remain with their owners.
DISCLAIMER:
I know very little about baseball or that sport's history. Corrections and additions are very welcome.
****
ANIMAL, BIRD, AND OTHER LIVING CREATURES REFERENCES IN THE NAMES OF NEGRO LEAGUE BASEBALL TEAMS
Source of team names: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Negro_league_baseball_teams
Comment: It's my belief that most of these animal and bird names for these baseball convey power, strength, deadly force, speed, agility, and endurance. However, the names for some animals, birds, or other living creatures might also connote physical grace and beauty (as in "That game was a beauty to watch". However, I'm not sure what to make of the name of the traveling team the Tennessee Rats"...
ANIMAL
Denver White Elephants
-snip-
I'm not sure what to make of this name. According to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_elephant
"The term derives from the sacred white elephants kept by Southeast Asian monarchs in Burma, Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia.[3] To possess a white elephant was regarded (and is still regarded in Thailand and Burma) as a sign that the monarch reigned with justice and power, and that the kingdom was blessed with peace and prosperity"....
In modern usage, it is an object, scheme, business venture, facility, etc., considered to be without use or value.[1]
Albino elephants exist in nature, usually being a reddish-brown or pink color.
**
Cincinnati Tigers [Ohio]
**
Cleveland Bears [Ohio]
**
Cleveland Cubs [Ohio]
**
Fort Worth Black Panthers [Texas]
-snip-
“Black Panthers” was probably also a referent to the race of the team members. Perhaps this team name should have been included in the list of names for Negro League teams that refer to race (i.e. skin color). Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/11/racial-and-ethnic-referents-in-group.html for that pancocojams post.
**
San Diego Tigers [California]
**
San Francisco Sea Lions [California]
**
Tennessee Rats [traveling team]
**
Toledo Tigers [Ohio]
****
BIRDS
Brooklyn Eagles [New York]
**
Columbus Blue Birds [Ohio]
**
Houston Eagles [Texas]
**
Newark Eagles [New Jersey]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newark_Eagles
"The Newark Eagles were formed in 1936 when the Newark Dodgers, established in 1933, were merged with the Brooklyn Eagles, established in 1935. Abe Manley and his wife Effa Manley, owners and founders of the Brooklyn Eagles, purchased the Newark Dodgers franchise and combined both teams' assets and player rosters.[1] Team management was left to Effa, making the Eagles the first professional team owned and operated by a woman. The Eagles shared Ruppert Stadium with the minor-league Newark Bears.
The Eagles were to (black) Newark what the Dodgers were to Brooklyn.
—Eagles star Max Manning
**
New Orleans Black Eagles [Louisiana]
-snip-
Since there are no eagles that are the color black, this team name probably also alludes to the players' race.
**
New Orleans Pelicans [Louisiana]
**
Oakland Larks [California]
****
INSECTS
Cleveland Hornets [Ohio]
**
Mineola Black Spiders [traveling team]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mineola_Black_Spiders
"The Mineola Black Spiders, also called the Texas Black Spiders, were an independent, generally all-black baseball team. They originated in and were loosely based from Mineola, Texas.
As a non-league barnstorming team, they often headquartered in other parts of the nation, especially northern Iowa, from 1932 until at least 1937. They were reported to have headquartered in Mason City, Charles City and Waverly, Iowa. Some newspaper accounts also list them as the Fort Worth Black Spiders as well as the Texas Black Spiders from Galveston.
Vernon "V.A." Klingaman, an Iowa native who settled in Mineola in the late 1920s, formed the team, which first began traveling in 1930's. Eventually attracting players from outside Mineola, Texas, they barnstormed throughout the nation in the 1930s, and likely traveled into Mexico with a team featuring Buck O'Neil. The Spiders played until at least 1941.
Referred to in newspapers as the Texas Black Spiders, they were often noted as the "Champions of Texas." Other sources list them as the Black Spiders of Mineola although some accounts also listed them as the Texas Black Spiders of Galveston or the Fort Worth Black Spiders. They were entered into the National Semi-Pro Baseball Tournament as the Waverly, Iowa, Black Spiders.
The team first set out for the Midwest in a black school bus with the team's name on the side. The bus had no windows and featured a cobweb in the back.
The club traveled extensively, arriving in Iowa in July 1932. The players played for a percentage of the gate. By the end of July, a dispute arose over player payments and ten players voted to leave the team. The players were purchased by the managers of the semi-pro Mason City Black Bats [1]... "
****
Thanks to the authors of the Wikipedia page who published a complete list of names of Negro League teams.
Thanks to all those who were members of those teams.
Thank you for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
This post is part of an ongoing series on group names of Negro League baseball teams and non-White American traveling (barnstorming) baseball teams.
This post presents a list of names of Negro League or traveling baseball teams that include a reference to animals, birds, or other living creatures.
These names are posted in relative alphabetical order under the broad sub-category of "Animals", "Birds" and "Other Living Creatures".
The home state for the team is given in brackets after the team name. If the team was a traveling team, that information is provided in brackets. Also, in some cases, brief editorial comments are posted below the group name.
In a few cases, a brief comment and a hyperlink are given for more information about a particular team.
The content of this post is presented for historical, cultural, and educational value.
It's my position that some of the names of these Negro League baseball teams provide information about the perspectives of Black people during the years that those teams were active.
Some of these group names may also be included in other posts in this series.
Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Negro_league_baseball for information about the history of The Negro League Baseball
All copyrights remain with their owners.
DISCLAIMER:
I know very little about baseball or that sport's history. Corrections and additions are very welcome.
****
ANIMAL, BIRD, AND OTHER LIVING CREATURES REFERENCES IN THE NAMES OF NEGRO LEAGUE BASEBALL TEAMS
Source of team names: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Negro_league_baseball_teams
Comment: It's my belief that most of these animal and bird names for these baseball convey power, strength, deadly force, speed, agility, and endurance. However, the names for some animals, birds, or other living creatures might also connote physical grace and beauty (as in "That game was a beauty to watch". However, I'm not sure what to make of the name of the traveling team the Tennessee Rats"...
ANIMAL
Denver White Elephants
-snip-
I'm not sure what to make of this name. According to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_elephant
"The term derives from the sacred white elephants kept by Southeast Asian monarchs in Burma, Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia.[3] To possess a white elephant was regarded (and is still regarded in Thailand and Burma) as a sign that the monarch reigned with justice and power, and that the kingdom was blessed with peace and prosperity"....
In modern usage, it is an object, scheme, business venture, facility, etc., considered to be without use or value.[1]
Albino elephants exist in nature, usually being a reddish-brown or pink color.
**
Cincinnati Tigers [Ohio]
**
Cleveland Bears [Ohio]
**
Cleveland Cubs [Ohio]
**
Fort Worth Black Panthers [Texas]
-snip-
“Black Panthers” was probably also a referent to the race of the team members. Perhaps this team name should have been included in the list of names for Negro League teams that refer to race (i.e. skin color). Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/11/racial-and-ethnic-referents-in-group.html for that pancocojams post.
**
San Diego Tigers [California]
**
San Francisco Sea Lions [California]
**
Tennessee Rats [traveling team]
**
Toledo Tigers [Ohio]
****
BIRDS
Brooklyn Eagles [New York]
**
Columbus Blue Birds [Ohio]
**
Houston Eagles [Texas]
**
Newark Eagles [New Jersey]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newark_Eagles
"The Newark Eagles were formed in 1936 when the Newark Dodgers, established in 1933, were merged with the Brooklyn Eagles, established in 1935. Abe Manley and his wife Effa Manley, owners and founders of the Brooklyn Eagles, purchased the Newark Dodgers franchise and combined both teams' assets and player rosters.[1] Team management was left to Effa, making the Eagles the first professional team owned and operated by a woman. The Eagles shared Ruppert Stadium with the minor-league Newark Bears.
The Eagles were to (black) Newark what the Dodgers were to Brooklyn.
—Eagles star Max Manning
**
New Orleans Black Eagles [Louisiana]
-snip-
Since there are no eagles that are the color black, this team name probably also alludes to the players' race.
**
New Orleans Pelicans [Louisiana]
**
Oakland Larks [California]
****
INSECTS
Cleveland Hornets [Ohio]
**
Mineola Black Spiders [traveling team]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mineola_Black_Spiders
"The Mineola Black Spiders, also called the Texas Black Spiders, were an independent, generally all-black baseball team. They originated in and were loosely based from Mineola, Texas.
As a non-league barnstorming team, they often headquartered in other parts of the nation, especially northern Iowa, from 1932 until at least 1937. They were reported to have headquartered in Mason City, Charles City and Waverly, Iowa. Some newspaper accounts also list them as the Fort Worth Black Spiders as well as the Texas Black Spiders from Galveston.
Vernon "V.A." Klingaman, an Iowa native who settled in Mineola in the late 1920s, formed the team, which first began traveling in 1930's. Eventually attracting players from outside Mineola, Texas, they barnstormed throughout the nation in the 1930s, and likely traveled into Mexico with a team featuring Buck O'Neil. The Spiders played until at least 1941.
Referred to in newspapers as the Texas Black Spiders, they were often noted as the "Champions of Texas." Other sources list them as the Black Spiders of Mineola although some accounts also listed them as the Texas Black Spiders of Galveston or the Fort Worth Black Spiders. They were entered into the National Semi-Pro Baseball Tournament as the Waverly, Iowa, Black Spiders.
The team first set out for the Midwest in a black school bus with the team's name on the side. The bus had no windows and featured a cobweb in the back.
The club traveled extensively, arriving in Iowa in July 1932. The players played for a percentage of the gate. By the end of July, a dispute arose over player payments and ten players voted to leave the team. The players were purchased by the managers of the semi-pro Mason City Black Bats [1]... "
****
Thanks to the authors of the Wikipedia page who published a complete list of names of Negro League teams.
Thanks to all those who were members of those teams.
Thank you for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
Power & Other High Status References In The Names Of Negro League Baseball Teams
Edited by Azizi Powell
This post is part of an ongoing series on group names of Negro League baseball teams and non-White American traveling (barnstorming) baseball teams.
This post presents a list of names of Negro League or traveling baseball teams that include a power or high status referent.
These names are posted in relative alphabetical order under the broad sub-categories. The home state for the team is given in brackets after the team name. If the team was a traveling team, that information is provided in brackets. Also, in some cases, brief editorial comments are posted below the group name.
In a few cases, a brief comment and a hyperlink are given for more information about a particular team.
The content of this post is presented for historical, cultural, and educational value.
It's my position that some of the names of these Negro League baseball teams provide information about the perspectives of Black people during the years that those teams were active. The use of power and other high status names by Black American baseball teams was a public rejection of the low status that was prevalent in the United States toward Black people. Similar high status names were adopted by other Black celebrities, including early Blues musicians and vocalists. A similar custom of choosing royalty and other high status stage names can be found in the names of Trinidadian Calypsonians.
****
Some of the group names that are featured in this post are also included in other posts in this series. For instance, the name "Twin City Colored Giants" [Minnesota] is also included in http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/11/racial-and-ethnic-referents-in-group.html
Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Negro_league_baseball for information about the history of The Negro League Baseball
All copyrights remain with their owners.
DISCLAIMER:
I know very little about baseball or that sport's history. Corrections and additions are very welcome.
****
POWER AND OTHER HIGH STATUS REFERENCES IN THE NAMES OF NEGRO LEAGUE BASEBALL TEAMS
Source of team names: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Negro_league_baseball_teams
BARONS
Birmingham Black Barons [Alabama]
****
COLONELS
Louisville Black Colonels [Kentucky]
****
ELITES
Cleveland Elites [Ohio]
****
GIANTS
["Giants" was by far the most often occurring word in the names of Negro League teams. My sense is that was because the word "giant" conveys strength, power, and fierceness in competititon.]
Atlantic City Bacharach Giants [New Jersey]
**
Baltimore Elite Giants [Maryland]
**
Boston Royal Giants [Massachusetts]
**
Brooklyn Royal Giants [New York]
**
Chicago American Giants [Illinois]
**
Chicago Columbia Giants [Illinois]
**
Chicago Giants [Illinois]
**
Chicago Union Giants [Illinois]
[Read information given under the Leland Giants.]
**
Columbus Elite Giants [Ohio]
**
Cuban X-Giants [New Jersey]
-snip-
The Cuban X-Giants may be the same group as the "Cuban Giants" who are mentioned in this Wikipedia page on the history of Negro League Baseball:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Negro_league_baseball
"The first nationally-known black professional baseball team was founded in 1885 when three clubs, the Keystone Athletics of Philadelphia, the Orions of Philadelphia, and the Manhattans of Washington, D.C., merged to form the Cuban Giants.[10]"
**
Kansas City Giants [Kansas]
**
Leland Giants [Illinois]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leland_Giants
"The Chicago Union Giants, the top black baseball team in the Midwest or West in the first decade of the 20th century, changed its name in 1905 to the Leland Giants, after manager and owner Frank Leland...
In 1910, Foster and Leland split and Foster won the rights to the Leland Giants name;[1] Leland's new team was called the Chicago Giants. The Leland Giants went 11-0 against top black teams that year and said they went 123-6 overall. The club was the most talented to date, as Home Run Johnson and Pop Lloyd (HOF) joined to play the middle infield, Petway, Hill and Foster returned and Frank Wickware joined the staff.
After the season, the team traveled to Cuba for the winter, playing the island's top teams. Cuban teams signed Lloyd, Hill, Johnson and Petway to play with them against the touring Detroit Tigers and Philadelphia Athletics. Black players gained recognition in the Detroit series by outhitting Ty Cobb and Sam Crawford.
In 1911, the club was renamed the Chicago American Giants."
**
Lincoln Giants [New York]
**
Shreveport Acme Giants [Louisiana]
-snip-
"Acme" means something that is at the point of perfection.
**
Twin City Colored Giants [Minnesota]
**
Washington Elite Giants [District of Columbia]
****
LORD BALTIMORE
Baltimore Lord Baltimores [Maryland]
****
MONARCH
Monroe Monarchs [Louisiana]
****
PYTHIANS
Philadelphia Pythians [Pennsylvania]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philadelphia_Pythians
“The Philadelphia Pythians (also Pythian Base Ball Club or Pythian Baseball Club) were founded in 1867 as the first black baseball club. It was founded by young African American leaders: Jacob C. White Jr. and Octavius V. Catto. The Pythians were composed of primarily business and middle class professionals from the surrounding areas of Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, and New York City...
Catto and White believed baseball was another way in which African Americans could assert their skills and independence, and prove their right to full citizenship and equality”.
-snip-< Italics were added to highlight this sentence. Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knights_of_Pythias for information about the “The Knights of Pythias" fraternal organization that was founded at Washington, DC, on 19 February 1864.
Here's an excerpt of that post:
"The Knights of Pythias was the first fraternal organization to receive a charter under an act of the United States Congress...
...Though the whites only clause was officially adopted in 1871, no black members had been admitted since the founding of the Order. The question of repealing the whites only clause came up in the 1964 and 1968 Supreme Lodges, but was not definitively acted upon. The Order remained whites only until at least 1979. Members are accepted by blackball ballot."
****
SENATORS
Austin Black Senators [Texas]
**
Washington Black Senators [District of Columbia]
****
STARS
Chappie Johnson's Stars [traveling team]
**
Cleveland Tate Stars [Ohio]
**
Cuban Stars (East) [traveling team]
**
Cuban Stars (West) [traveling team]
**
Harlem Stars [New York]
**
Lincoln Stars [New York]
**
New Orleans Crescent Stars [Louisiana]
**
Philadelphia Stars [Pennsylvania]
****
Thanks to the authors of the Wikipedia page who published a complete list of names of Negro League teams.
Thanks to all those who were members of those teams.
Thank you for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
This post is part of an ongoing series on group names of Negro League baseball teams and non-White American traveling (barnstorming) baseball teams.
This post presents a list of names of Negro League or traveling baseball teams that include a power or high status referent.
These names are posted in relative alphabetical order under the broad sub-categories. The home state for the team is given in brackets after the team name. If the team was a traveling team, that information is provided in brackets. Also, in some cases, brief editorial comments are posted below the group name.
In a few cases, a brief comment and a hyperlink are given for more information about a particular team.
The content of this post is presented for historical, cultural, and educational value.
It's my position that some of the names of these Negro League baseball teams provide information about the perspectives of Black people during the years that those teams were active. The use of power and other high status names by Black American baseball teams was a public rejection of the low status that was prevalent in the United States toward Black people. Similar high status names were adopted by other Black celebrities, including early Blues musicians and vocalists. A similar custom of choosing royalty and other high status stage names can be found in the names of Trinidadian Calypsonians.
****
Some of the group names that are featured in this post are also included in other posts in this series. For instance, the name "Twin City Colored Giants" [Minnesota] is also included in http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/11/racial-and-ethnic-referents-in-group.html
Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Negro_league_baseball for information about the history of The Negro League Baseball
All copyrights remain with their owners.
DISCLAIMER:
I know very little about baseball or that sport's history. Corrections and additions are very welcome.
****
POWER AND OTHER HIGH STATUS REFERENCES IN THE NAMES OF NEGRO LEAGUE BASEBALL TEAMS
Source of team names: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Negro_league_baseball_teams
BARONS
Birmingham Black Barons [Alabama]
****
COLONELS
Louisville Black Colonels [Kentucky]
****
ELITES
Cleveland Elites [Ohio]
****
GIANTS
["Giants" was by far the most often occurring word in the names of Negro League teams. My sense is that was because the word "giant" conveys strength, power, and fierceness in competititon.]
Atlantic City Bacharach Giants [New Jersey]
**
Baltimore Elite Giants [Maryland]
**
Boston Royal Giants [Massachusetts]
**
Brooklyn Royal Giants [New York]
**
Chicago American Giants [Illinois]
**
Chicago Columbia Giants [Illinois]
**
Chicago Giants [Illinois]
**
Chicago Union Giants [Illinois]
[Read information given under the Leland Giants.]
**
Columbus Elite Giants [Ohio]
**
Cuban X-Giants [New Jersey]
-snip-
The Cuban X-Giants may be the same group as the "Cuban Giants" who are mentioned in this Wikipedia page on the history of Negro League Baseball:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Negro_league_baseball
"The first nationally-known black professional baseball team was founded in 1885 when three clubs, the Keystone Athletics of Philadelphia, the Orions of Philadelphia, and the Manhattans of Washington, D.C., merged to form the Cuban Giants.[10]"
**
Kansas City Giants [Kansas]
**
Leland Giants [Illinois]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leland_Giants
"The Chicago Union Giants, the top black baseball team in the Midwest or West in the first decade of the 20th century, changed its name in 1905 to the Leland Giants, after manager and owner Frank Leland...
In 1910, Foster and Leland split and Foster won the rights to the Leland Giants name;[1] Leland's new team was called the Chicago Giants. The Leland Giants went 11-0 against top black teams that year and said they went 123-6 overall. The club was the most talented to date, as Home Run Johnson and Pop Lloyd (HOF) joined to play the middle infield, Petway, Hill and Foster returned and Frank Wickware joined the staff.
After the season, the team traveled to Cuba for the winter, playing the island's top teams. Cuban teams signed Lloyd, Hill, Johnson and Petway to play with them against the touring Detroit Tigers and Philadelphia Athletics. Black players gained recognition in the Detroit series by outhitting Ty Cobb and Sam Crawford.
In 1911, the club was renamed the Chicago American Giants."
**
Lincoln Giants [New York]
**
Shreveport Acme Giants [Louisiana]
-snip-
"Acme" means something that is at the point of perfection.
**
Twin City Colored Giants [Minnesota]
**
Washington Elite Giants [District of Columbia]
****
LORD BALTIMORE
Baltimore Lord Baltimores [Maryland]
****
MONARCH
Monroe Monarchs [Louisiana]
****
PYTHIANS
Philadelphia Pythians [Pennsylvania]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philadelphia_Pythians
“The Philadelphia Pythians (also Pythian Base Ball Club or Pythian Baseball Club) were founded in 1867 as the first black baseball club. It was founded by young African American leaders: Jacob C. White Jr. and Octavius V. Catto. The Pythians were composed of primarily business and middle class professionals from the surrounding areas of Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, and New York City...
Catto and White believed baseball was another way in which African Americans could assert their skills and independence, and prove their right to full citizenship and equality”.
-snip-< Italics were added to highlight this sentence. Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knights_of_Pythias for information about the “The Knights of Pythias" fraternal organization that was founded at Washington, DC, on 19 February 1864.
Here's an excerpt of that post:
"The Knights of Pythias was the first fraternal organization to receive a charter under an act of the United States Congress...
...Though the whites only clause was officially adopted in 1871, no black members had been admitted since the founding of the Order. The question of repealing the whites only clause came up in the 1964 and 1968 Supreme Lodges, but was not definitively acted upon. The Order remained whites only until at least 1979. Members are accepted by blackball ballot."
****
SENATORS
Austin Black Senators [Texas]
**
Washington Black Senators [District of Columbia]
****
STARS
Chappie Johnson's Stars [traveling team]
**
Cleveland Tate Stars [Ohio]
**
Cuban Stars (East) [traveling team]
**
Cuban Stars (West) [traveling team]
**
Harlem Stars [New York]
**
Lincoln Stars [New York]
**
New Orleans Crescent Stars [Louisiana]
**
Philadelphia Stars [Pennsylvania]
****
Thanks to the authors of the Wikipedia page who published a complete list of names of Negro League teams.
Thanks to all those who were members of those teams.
Thank you for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
Racial And Ethnic Referents In The Group Names Of Negro League Baseball Teams
Edited by Azizi Powell
This post is part of an ongoing series on group names of Negro League baseball teams and non-White American traveling (barnstorming) baseball teams.
This post presents a list of names of Negro League or traveling baseball teams that include a racial referent such as "Colored" and "Ethiopian", or a national/ethnic referent such as "Cuban", "Ethiopian", and "Zulu".
This list also includes group names that include the word "Brown" or "Browns" and "Black", although in some cases those words might be used as names of the color of a uniform, bird, or animal and not a racial referent. However, in most cases, I think it's likely that the animal or bird was chosen as the name of the Negro League or Black American traveling team because of its color connection to those players' race.
In addition, this list also includes what I consider to be an oblique racial referent - "Monrovian" ("Monrovia" is the capitol of Liberia, West Africa).
These names are posted in relative alphabetical order. The home state for the team is given in brackets after the team name. If the team was a traveling team, that information is provided in brackets. Also, in some cases, brief editorial comments are posted below the group name.
In a few cases, a brief comment and a hyperlink are given for more information about a particular team.
The content of this post is presented for historical, cultural, and educational value.
It's my position that some of the names of these Negro League baseball teams provide information about the perspectives of Black people during the years that those teams were active.
Some of these group names that are featured in this post are also included in other posts in this series. For instance, the name "Twin City Colored Giants" [Minnesota] is also included in this post on the use of the name "Giant" in Negro League Team Names: http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/11/power-other-high-status-references-in.html.
Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Negro_league_baseball for information about the history of The Negro League Baseball
All copyrights remain with their owners.
DISCLAIMER:
I know very little about baseball or that sport's history. Corrections and additions are very welcome.
****
RACIAL, ETHNIC, OR NATIONAL NAMES OF NEGRO LEAGUE BASEBALL TEAMS
Source of team names: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Negro_league_baseball_teams
All Cubans [traveling team]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_Cubans
“The All Cubans were a team of Cuban professional baseball players that toured the United States during 1899 and 1902-05, playing against white semiprofessional and Negro league teams. The team was the first Latin American professional baseball team to tour the United States”
**
All Nations [traveling team]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_Nations
“All Nations was the name of a barnstorming professional baseball team that toured the Midwest from 1912 to 1918, and again in 1920 [1] and 1921, [2] and from 1923 to 1925. It derived its name from the fact that its team included players of several nationalities, including blacks and whites, Indians, Hawaiians, Orientals, and Latin Americans... The team was based out of Kansas City[3] and Des Moines
-snip-
Note that “Orientals” is no longer a socially acceptable referent for Asian people.
**
Austin Black Senators [Texas]
**
Atlanta Black Crackers [Georgia]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlanta_Black_Crackers
The Atlanta Black Crackers (originally known as the Atlanta Cubs) were a professional Negro league baseball team which played during the early-to-mid-20th century...
The Atlanta Black Crackers were founded as the Atlanta Cubs following the start of the 20th century with a semiprofessional team of black college students. They began to play independently in 1919 and changed their name to the Black Crackers because fans had already begun to call them by that name…
The Black Crackers joined the minor league Negro Southern League in March 1920. Their uniforms, bats, baseballs, and other supplies were donated by their white Southern Association counterpart, the Atlanta Crackers."
-snip-
"Cracker" used here may have no pejorative connotation. Click http://open.salon.com/blog/linthesoutheast/2011/10/07/the_history_of_crackers for information about the history of "cracker" as a referent for people.
**
Birmingham Black Barons [Alabama]
**
Chattanooga Black Lookouts [Tennessee]
**
Chicago Brown Bombers [Illinois]
-snip-
“Bombers” is a positive appellation implying competitive fierceness & power.]
**
Cincinnati Browns [Ohio]
**
Cincinnati Cubans [Ohio]
**
Cleveland Browns [Ohio]
**
Cuban X-Giants [New Jersey]
-snip-
This may be the same group as the "Cuban Giants" who are mentioned in this Wikipedia page on the history of Negro League Baseball:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Negro_league_baseball
"The first nationally-known black professional baseball team was founded in 1885 when three clubs, the Keystone Athletics of Philadelphia, the Orions of Philadelphia, and the Manhattans of Washington, D.C., merged to form the Cuban Giants.[10]"
**
Colored House of David [traveling team]
-snip-
”Colored” is a clip of “Colored People”, a formal referent for African Americans that has largely been retired since at least the 1960s.
snip-
”House of David” may have had a religious reference, perhaps implying that God was on this team’s side.
-snip-
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barnstorm_(athletics)
"Barnstorming in athletics refers to sports teams or individuals that travel to various locations, usually small towns, to stage exhibition matches. Barnstorming teams differ from traveling teams in that barnstorming teams operate outside the framework of an established athletic league, while traveling teams (also known as "road teams") are designated by a league, formally or informally, to be a designated visiting team for all, or almost all, of its league games."
Click that link to find information about traveling baseball teams and barnstorming baseball teams.
**
The Ethiopian Clowns [traveling team]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indianapolis_Clowns
“The Indianapolis Clowns were a professional baseball team in the Negro American League. They began play as the independent Ethiopian Clowns, joined the league as the Cincinnati Clowns and, after a couple of years, relocated to Indianapolis…
-snip-
In the 19th century & early to mid 20th century "Ethiopian” was a general referent in the USA for people of Black African descent
**
Fort Worth Black Panthers [Texas]
**
Harrisburg Monrovians [Pennsylvania]
-snip-
Monrovia is the capital city of the West African country of Liberia. Therefore, I believe this is an oblique racial referent.
**
Jersey City Colored Athletics [New Jersey]
**
Little Rock Black Travelers [Arkansas]
**
Long Branch Cubans [New Jersey]
-snip-
”Long Branch” is a city in New Jersey
**
Louisville Black Colonels [Kentucky]
**
Newark Browns [New Jersey]
**
New Orleans Black Eagles [Louisiana]
**
New York Black Yankees[New York]
**
New York Cubans [New York]
**
San Antonio Black Bronchos [Texas]
**
San Antonio Black Indians [Texas]
-snip-
“Black Indians” refers to people of Black and Indian [Native American] descent.
**
St. Paul Colored Gophers [Minnesota]
**
Twin City Colored Giants [Minnesota]
**
Washington Black Senators [District of Columbia]
**
Zulu Cannibal Giants [Kentucky]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zulu_Cannibal_Giants
“The Zulu Cannibal Giants were an African American baseball team (they referred to themselves as a Baseball "Zulu Tribe", based on a concept inspired by the war in Ethiopia) formed in 1934 by Charlie Henry in Louisville, Kentucky”…The Zulu Cannibal Giants gained notoriety for their propensity to turn a baseball game into a comedy performance, much in the same way that the Harlem Globetrotters did with basketball many years later.”
****
RELATED LINK
Hat tip to http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2013/10/timeline-history-offensive-sports-mascots-redskins-snyder "Timeline: A Century of Racist Sports Team Names" By Matt Connolly and Ian Gordon for their article which alerted me to the use of racial rreferences in the names of Negro League baseball teams.
Most of that article focuses on the historical use & the present day use by American athletic teams of the pejorative term "redskins". I strongly agree with the authors and most of the article's commenters that the use of that referent is offensive and should cease.
****
Thanks to the authors of the above linked Wikipedia page that provides a complete list of names of Negro League teams.
Thanks to all those who were members of those teams.
Thank you for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
This post is part of an ongoing series on group names of Negro League baseball teams and non-White American traveling (barnstorming) baseball teams.
This post presents a list of names of Negro League or traveling baseball teams that include a racial referent such as "Colored" and "Ethiopian", or a national/ethnic referent such as "Cuban", "Ethiopian", and "Zulu".
This list also includes group names that include the word "Brown" or "Browns" and "Black", although in some cases those words might be used as names of the color of a uniform, bird, or animal and not a racial referent. However, in most cases, I think it's likely that the animal or bird was chosen as the name of the Negro League or Black American traveling team because of its color connection to those players' race.
In addition, this list also includes what I consider to be an oblique racial referent - "Monrovian" ("Monrovia" is the capitol of Liberia, West Africa).
These names are posted in relative alphabetical order. The home state for the team is given in brackets after the team name. If the team was a traveling team, that information is provided in brackets. Also, in some cases, brief editorial comments are posted below the group name.
In a few cases, a brief comment and a hyperlink are given for more information about a particular team.
The content of this post is presented for historical, cultural, and educational value.
It's my position that some of the names of these Negro League baseball teams provide information about the perspectives of Black people during the years that those teams were active.
Some of these group names that are featured in this post are also included in other posts in this series. For instance, the name "Twin City Colored Giants" [Minnesota] is also included in this post on the use of the name "Giant" in Negro League Team Names: http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/11/power-other-high-status-references-in.html.
Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Negro_league_baseball for information about the history of The Negro League Baseball
All copyrights remain with their owners.
DISCLAIMER:
I know very little about baseball or that sport's history. Corrections and additions are very welcome.
****
RACIAL, ETHNIC, OR NATIONAL NAMES OF NEGRO LEAGUE BASEBALL TEAMS
Source of team names: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Negro_league_baseball_teams
All Cubans [traveling team]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_Cubans
“The All Cubans were a team of Cuban professional baseball players that toured the United States during 1899 and 1902-05, playing against white semiprofessional and Negro league teams. The team was the first Latin American professional baseball team to tour the United States”
**
All Nations [traveling team]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_Nations
“All Nations was the name of a barnstorming professional baseball team that toured the Midwest from 1912 to 1918, and again in 1920 [1] and 1921, [2] and from 1923 to 1925. It derived its name from the fact that its team included players of several nationalities, including blacks and whites, Indians, Hawaiians, Orientals, and Latin Americans... The team was based out of Kansas City[3] and Des Moines
-snip-
Note that “Orientals” is no longer a socially acceptable referent for Asian people.
**
Austin Black Senators [Texas]
**
Atlanta Black Crackers [Georgia]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlanta_Black_Crackers
The Atlanta Black Crackers (originally known as the Atlanta Cubs) were a professional Negro league baseball team which played during the early-to-mid-20th century...
The Atlanta Black Crackers were founded as the Atlanta Cubs following the start of the 20th century with a semiprofessional team of black college students. They began to play independently in 1919 and changed their name to the Black Crackers because fans had already begun to call them by that name…
The Black Crackers joined the minor league Negro Southern League in March 1920. Their uniforms, bats, baseballs, and other supplies were donated by their white Southern Association counterpart, the Atlanta Crackers."
-snip-
"Cracker" used here may have no pejorative connotation. Click http://open.salon.com/blog/linthesoutheast/2011/10/07/the_history_of_crackers for information about the history of "cracker" as a referent for people.
**
Birmingham Black Barons [Alabama]
**
Chattanooga Black Lookouts [Tennessee]
**
Chicago Brown Bombers [Illinois]
-snip-
“Bombers” is a positive appellation implying competitive fierceness & power.]
**
Cincinnati Browns [Ohio]
**
Cincinnati Cubans [Ohio]
**
Cleveland Browns [Ohio]
**
Cuban X-Giants [New Jersey]
-snip-
This may be the same group as the "Cuban Giants" who are mentioned in this Wikipedia page on the history of Negro League Baseball:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Negro_league_baseball
"The first nationally-known black professional baseball team was founded in 1885 when three clubs, the Keystone Athletics of Philadelphia, the Orions of Philadelphia, and the Manhattans of Washington, D.C., merged to form the Cuban Giants.[10]"
**
Colored House of David [traveling team]
-snip-
”Colored” is a clip of “Colored People”, a formal referent for African Americans that has largely been retired since at least the 1960s.
snip-
”House of David” may have had a religious reference, perhaps implying that God was on this team’s side.
-snip-
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barnstorm_(athletics)
"Barnstorming in athletics refers to sports teams or individuals that travel to various locations, usually small towns, to stage exhibition matches. Barnstorming teams differ from traveling teams in that barnstorming teams operate outside the framework of an established athletic league, while traveling teams (also known as "road teams") are designated by a league, formally or informally, to be a designated visiting team for all, or almost all, of its league games."
Click that link to find information about traveling baseball teams and barnstorming baseball teams.
**
The Ethiopian Clowns [traveling team]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indianapolis_Clowns
“The Indianapolis Clowns were a professional baseball team in the Negro American League. They began play as the independent Ethiopian Clowns, joined the league as the Cincinnati Clowns and, after a couple of years, relocated to Indianapolis…
-snip-
In the 19th century & early to mid 20th century "Ethiopian” was a general referent in the USA for people of Black African descent
**
Fort Worth Black Panthers [Texas]
**
Harrisburg Monrovians [Pennsylvania]
-snip-
Monrovia is the capital city of the West African country of Liberia. Therefore, I believe this is an oblique racial referent.
**
Jersey City Colored Athletics [New Jersey]
**
Little Rock Black Travelers [Arkansas]
**
Long Branch Cubans [New Jersey]
-snip-
”Long Branch” is a city in New Jersey
**
Louisville Black Colonels [Kentucky]
**
Newark Browns [New Jersey]
**
New Orleans Black Eagles [Louisiana]
**
New York Black Yankees[New York]
**
New York Cubans [New York]
**
San Antonio Black Bronchos [Texas]
**
San Antonio Black Indians [Texas]
-snip-
“Black Indians” refers to people of Black and Indian [Native American] descent.
**
St. Paul Colored Gophers [Minnesota]
**
Twin City Colored Giants [Minnesota]
**
Washington Black Senators [District of Columbia]
**
Zulu Cannibal Giants [Kentucky]
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zulu_Cannibal_Giants
“The Zulu Cannibal Giants were an African American baseball team (they referred to themselves as a Baseball "Zulu Tribe", based on a concept inspired by the war in Ethiopia) formed in 1934 by Charlie Henry in Louisville, Kentucky”…The Zulu Cannibal Giants gained notoriety for their propensity to turn a baseball game into a comedy performance, much in the same way that the Harlem Globetrotters did with basketball many years later.”
****
RELATED LINK
Hat tip to http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2013/10/timeline-history-offensive-sports-mascots-redskins-snyder "Timeline: A Century of Racist Sports Team Names" By Matt Connolly and Ian Gordon for their article which alerted me to the use of racial rreferences in the names of Negro League baseball teams.
Most of that article focuses on the historical use & the present day use by American athletic teams of the pejorative term "redskins". I strongly agree with the authors and most of the article's commenters that the use of that referent is offensive and should cease.
****
Thanks to the authors of the above linked Wikipedia page that provides a complete list of names of Negro League teams.
Thanks to all those who were members of those teams.
Thank you for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)