Manitoba junior men’s hockey team changes Indigenous name to Titans

NEEPAWA, MANITOBA – A junior men’s hockey team in Manitoba is the latest to change its name following a push against the use of Indigenous names and caricatures as mascots.

The team in Neepawa, a town about 170 kilometres west of Winnipeg, has announced it will now be called the Titans.

The team had been called the Natives for the last 32 years and the logo was an image of a stereotyped Indigenous man with feathers in his hair.

The board of directors says it was time to leave the name in the past.

The club says in a video online that Titans stand out for greatness, which exemplifies the local community.

The new logo also represents local canola fields and has the colours of black and grey, the team’s colours from the 1990s.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 8, 2021.