Charles Waters – Traci Sorell: Mascot (Carlesbridge Publishing 2023)
In Rye, Virginia, an English teacher gives eighth graders a special assignment. ‘Write a poem about yourself and your feelings.’ Based on the poems, it turns out that the newly arrived Native girl feels very bad because of the school’s mascot, a tomahawk-wielding Indian. Added to this is the battle hymn chanted at sports competitions and matches. Upon further research, it turns out that the caricature is hated by at least as many people as it is adored by.
We can learn about the events in the form of verse, from the point of view of six children:
Callie: Black Cherokee Nation citizen who just moved to town
Franklin: Black, but he doesn’t want to know more about his own Black heritage, he prefers football
Priya: her grandparents came to the States from India, she wants to be a journalist
Sean: comes from an Irish working-class family who have attended this school for six generations
Tessa: white, but she considers everything to be a matter of her heart to stand up for
Luis: Immigrated from El Salvador with his parents who want him to be a doctor or lawyer, but he is interested in math and coaching.
The main issue of the story is whether or not the school mascot should be changed. But the question is not so simple. Not only is the difference of opinion between whites and indigenous people shown, but also discrimination against people of color, the theme of home schooling and socialization, and the difference between the working class and the upper middle class. The stereotypical depiction of Native people in the media and in professional sports is a problem affecting America as a whole, and one that the National Congress of American Indinas have been fighting against for sixty years. The program reached schools in 2020. We can see an example of this in this book, which I wholeheartedly recommend to anyone who wants to look a little below the surface.
Black poet Charles Waters advocates racial understanding and friendship in his poems. Traci Sorell is a Cherokee Native citizen who writes in her books about contemporary characters who are proud of their heritage.
