KC Chiefs ban headdresses, face paint, will review Arrowhead chop

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs said they are prohibiting fans who attend games at Arrowhead Stadium from wearing headdresses or painting their faces in ways that depict Native American cultures and traditions, the team said in a statement Thursday.

The National Football League team also said it would conduct “a thorough review process” of the “Arrowhead Chop,” The Kansas City Star reported.

“In 2014, we began a dialogue with a group of local leaders from diverse American Indian backgrounds and experiences,’' the Chiefs said in their statement. “As an organization, our goal was to gain a better understanding of the issues facing American Indian communities in our region and explore opportunities to both raise awareness of American Indian cultures and celebrate the rich traditions of tribes with a historic connection to the Kansas City area.

“We are grateful for the meaningful conversations we have had with all of these American Indian leaders. It is important that we continue the dialogue on these significant topics, and we look forward to continuing to work together in the future.‘'

The team will also examine the beating of a large drum inside the stadium, NFL.com reported. The team said it is “exploring all options for a modified engagement moment from the Drum Deck that maintains a unifying effect between our fans and our players but better represents the spiritual significance of the drum in American Indian cultures.”

Rhonda LeValdo, an Acoma Pueblo tribe member who teaches media communications at Haskell Indian Nations University in Lawrence, Kansas, told the Star that the team should cut all references to Native Americans.

“They need to get rid of everything,” LeValdo told the newspaper. “They need to change the name. Everything.

“I’ve always been advocating for this -- you can’t just keep an element of it.”

The Chiefs are following Washington’s NFL franchise, which ditched its “Redskins” name and logo. Both were considered offensive by Native American groups and others.

Team officials said this week they planned to have fans at home games, capping attendance at 22% in response to the coronavirus pandemic, ESPN reported. The team reported Arrowhead Stadium’s capacity at 72,936.

Cox Media Group