Scott Halleran / Getty Images file

Is the Florida State seminole mascot offensive to you, or is it a positive symbol? NBCSports.com contributor Michael Ventre wonders.

I find the term “Redskin” to be unacceptable (even though we’re on topic here but outside the purview of the NCAA). In the interests of full disclosure, it might be because I grew up a New York Giants fan and I hated the Washington Redskins and now I’m looking for a reason to stick it to them. But I also believe that, unlike Brave or Indian or Warrior, the name Redskin itself has been considered a slur in many quarters rather than a compliment.

Also important is how Native Americans want to be perceived and remembered.  When I was growing up and saw movies depicting cowboys and Indians, I didn’t think much of the outcomes because I was too young and dumb to know better and I always just figured the cowboys were the good guys. When I realized later what a raw deal Native Americans got, I rooted for the Indians, even though they still always lost during the John Wayne-Randolph Scott era.

Whether anyone wants to admit it or not, Native American culture has almost faded from view. Revisionist Westerns that might treat the struggle between the white man and Indians more truthfully — like “Dances With Wolves,” for instance — aren’t being made. History, for most kids, is a tedious and tiresome subject in school.

Unfortunately, the one perception that is thriving when it comes to Native Americans is the Indian gaming business. While such casinos certainly have helped some Native American communities prosper, they have also created the image of a noble and majestic culture that has now been reduced to relying on a major vice that drains people of their hard-earned money.

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If the NCAA and others are successful in replacing any Native American references in sports with benign substitutes, they will further push that culture and its rich history from the national consciousness. It may sound absurd to some that a man dressed in war paint and feathers running along the sidelines at a basketball game will raise awareness and interest in our nation’s past. But if you look at it as a tribute rather than a slam — and I believe most people do — then yes, it will. And just think about the alternative: When there are no such cultural reminders, that segment of society is in greater danger of being forgotten.

And if there is one area here where cynicism is in full bloom, it’s in the NCAA’s actions and motives. The ban is feeble. It does not affect football at all, and it only affects other sports in postseason tournaments. The NCAA is not so outraged and offended by the Native American nicknames and mascots that it is willing to fight to impose an all-out ban on all their member schools in all sports — and therefore turn down all merchandising revenue that flows in from selling jerseys and other items with Seminoles and Warriors on them. The NCAA is once again hypocritical, on one hand trying to stake out the moral high ground by trumpeting a politically correct measure, while at the same time using the other to rake in cash.

I don’t know about anyone else, but I choose to be offended by that.

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