A Native American tribal chief has asked Jeep to stop using the Cherokee name and has called on the automaker to open a dialogue on “'cultural appropriateness”.
Chuck Hoskin, principal chief of the Cherokee Nation, has written a statement to the American automotive magazine Car & Driver telling Jeep's parent firm Stellantis that “he does not condone” the use of the name Cherokee on the vehicles.
“I think we're in a day and age in this country where it's time for both corporations and team sports to retire the use of Native American names, images and mascots from their products, team jerseys and sports in general.
“I'm sure this comes from a place that is well-intended, but it does not honor us by having our name plastered on the side of a car,” Hoskin said.
Hoskin's statement came about after the Cherokee Nation were approached by Car & Driver with an enquiry to their stance on the Cherokee vehicle name, and subsequently held a Zoom call with representatives from Stellantis and Jeep who had contacted him, the group said.
In light of George Floyd's murder last year, many corporations and companies have been forced to reflect on their logos and names that are considered to have racist connotations.
Earlier this month, parent-company PepsiCo announced that Aunt Jemima would change its name to the Pearl Milling Company and in September 2020, Mars Food announced that Uncle Ben's would be renamed as Ben's Original.
In terms of Native American sports mascots, the Washington Redskins dropped their logo and have renamed themselves as the Washington Football Team, dropping all associations with Native American tribal imagery.
And in December last year, the Cleveland Indians, a Major League Baseball team, announced that the Indians name would be dropped after the 2021 season, after ditching their 'Chief Wahoo' logo back in 2018.
In response to the statement, Jeep said: “Our vehicle names have been carefully chosen and nurtured over the years to honor and celebrate Native American people for their nobility, prowess, and pride.
“We are, more than ever, committed to a respectful and open dialogue with Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin, Jr,” the statement added, but did not elaborate on whether the company would be making any changes to the Cherokee name.
Hoskin says the best way to honour the Oklahoma-based tribe is to learn more about its history.
“The best way to honour us is to learn about our sovereign government, our role in this country, our history, culture and language and have meaningful dialogue with federally recognized tribes on cultural appropriateness,” Hoskin said.
The Grand Cherokee is Jeep's best-selling model, while the Cherokee is its third best-selling. The original Cherokee model line was temporarily dropped back in 2001, but the name was reintroduced in 2013 on a new compact SUV.
Jeep recently unveiled a redesigned version of the Grand Cherokee, and the company has sold SUVs under the Cherokee brand name for about 45 years.
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Keyword: Chief of Cherokee Nation says "its time" for Jeep to stop using Cherokee as a model name