Lily Gladstone shades KC Chiefs over 'misrepresentation' of Native Americans but internet shuts her down

SANTA BARBARA, CALIFORNIA: In a post-Super Bowl revelation, 'Killers Of The Flower Moon' star Lily Gladstone has thrust the Kansas City Chiefs into the spotlight, accusing them of perpetuating the "misrepresentation" of Native Americans, as per NME.

The victorious Chiefs, who clinched Super Bowl LVIII against the San Francisco 49ers, now face renewed scrutiny over their name, symbols, and gestures. Gladstone's comments have reignited the ongoing debate surrounding cultural sensitivity in professional sports.

Lily Gladstone takes a subtle jab at Kansas City Chiefs

Speaking at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival’s Virtuosos Awards, Gladstone - who recently became the first Native American actress nominated for a Best Actress Oscar - reflected on the "long overdue" milestone.

However, the actress said more progress is still needed when it comes to accurate representation of Native Americans in film and culture. Her comments were made just ahead of the Chiefs competing in and ultimately winning the 2024 Super Bowl LVIII against the 49ers.

"Some of the first filmmakers [and] the first film footage was shot by native people documenting our way of life. But that’s a lot of history and a lot of years of exclusion or misrepresentation, and I mean Super Bowl’s tomorrow. We haven’t come that far if we look at one of the teams that’s playing," Gladstone remarked, referring to the Chiefs.

The Chiefs have faced years of criticism from Native American groups over their name, arrowhead logo and 'tomahawk chop' chant, which opponents argue promote offensive stereotypes about Native American culture.

When the team won the Super Bowl in 2023, protestors gathered demanding that the 'tomahawk chop' cease and the franchise change its name. In 2020, the Chiefs did ban fans from wearing Native American headdresses or certain kinds of face paint.

However, some fans have still worn such gear regardless. Overall, the team has not made overarching changes on the scale of the former Washington Redskins retiring what many considered a racial slur name in favor of the Washington Commanders.

Internet reacts to Lily Gladstone's comments about Kansas City Chiefs

In the wake of Gladstone's critique of the Chiefs, the internet swiftly voiced its opinions, with majority of the users dismissing the issue altogether.

One X user remarked, "This is a non-existent issue. Are they gonna rename the Chiefs like they renamed the Redskins into the Commanders? From what I heard, there was a lot of backlash after the Redskins got renamed. Honestly, I don't think her opinion on this is important."

Another user expressed frustration, remarking, "Oh the whole world has to be exactly how you want it huh?" A third user derided the debate as trivial, writing, "This is so silly." Another commenter expressed fatigue, stating, "We are sooo tired of this shit."

The online discourse continued with a concise but critical response from a fifth user who deemed the situation "annoying." Adding to the mix, a sixth user dismissed Gladstone's stance with a brief but dismissive comment, "here she go."

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.