However, the dialogue with Cherokee Nation is not over.
It seems that the dialogue between Jeep, the Cherokee Nation and the automaker is not over. According to reports, the automaker reached out to the sovereign tribal government for an education program for its employees in the summer 2020. Although the event did not go according to plan, both sides had a second conversation several months later. Stellantis now owns Jeep and asked it to stop using the Cherokee name in its products.
A report from Car and Driver shed more light on the situation in February. The Cherokee Nation was contacted by the publication for a statement. This helped to take the conversation with Jeep to the next stage. Chuck Hoskin Jr. of Cherokee Nation, principal chief, said Automotive News, “We don’t go out across America’s cultural landscape [looking] out for things that offend] and speak out on them.” Car and Driver reached out to Chuck Hoskin Jr. for comment in this instance.
Hosking acknowledged that the automaker had engaged in proactive discussions about the matter. He stated to Automotive News that he did not give Jeep permission to continue using the Cherokee name. However, it appears this will not stop the company.Hoskin said, “I felt it was the right decision to drop it.” “And I believe they respectfully declined that action. They also opened the door, I believe, for further discussion, which they did. It was, therefore, a great discussion.
Hoskin explained that the problem is not limited to Jeep. Hoskin believes that all businesses should cease using Native American imagery and names. “Beyond the Jeep issue, to depict culture in the form mascots and chants at football venues, I believe the country is in a better position to have a conversation about that and hopefully move on from those depictions.