It's the Cleveland Indians home opener and the grounds outside
Progressive Field are a sea of red and blue jerseys. As the
crowds of celebratory fans walk toward the ballpark's entrance,
they pass a small group of protesters holding signs that say
that the team's name and mascot, Chief Wahoo, are racist and
offensive. About 10 people stand in a small park next to the
stadium, quietly holding signs that say "People Not Mascots" and
"Stop Teaching Your Children Racism." Every once in a while,
someone in the stream of baseball fans pauses to shout
mockingly, "Chief Wahoo Rules!", "You killed Custer" or just
"Shut up!" Robert Roche, executive director of Cleveland's
American Indian Education Center and a Chirichau Apache tribal
member, says it's been like this each of the 30-some years he's
been protesting. The shouting gets angrier and more frequent the
closer it gets to game time, with many of the hecklers fresh
from the nearby bars. "If you stand here long enough," Roche
says, "you'll see that racism is alive