Plans are apparently in motion for the Cleveland Indians to pick up a new name, ditching the one that has stirred controversial conversations in recent years.
Since the New York Times and other outlets have reported the upcoming name change, news has even garnered attention from President Donald Trump.
Trump took to Twitter on Sunday evening (December 13) to condemn the “cancel culture” he said is prompting the name change.
“Oh no! What is going on?” Trump wrote with a retweet about the team dropping its “controversial” name. “This is not good news, even for ‘Indians’. Cancel culture at work!”
News 5 Cleveland previously initiated a poll on Twitter, asking whether the Cleveland Indians should adopt a new name.
Results of the July 3 poll show the majority of participants — 70.9% — opted not to support the name change.
Others, however, were in favor of the change.
The team has been the Cleveland Indians for 105 years.
The move to adopt a new team name comes after the team stopped using its former logo of Chief Wahoo.
“I think it’s time to move forward,” Manager Terry Francona said during a press conference in July. “It’s a very difficult subject. It’s also delicate.”
Cleveland Indians owner Paul Dolan said in an interview with the Associated Press on Monday (December 14) that the team will still be called the Indians in the 2021 season and until a new name is selected.
Dolan said “it’s time” to rename the team. “The name is no longer acceptable in our world,” he said.
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