The and the kicked off the 2021 World Series on Tuesday night. Major League Baseball commi sioner Rob Manfred was at Minute Maid Park for Game 1, and, prior to the game, he defended the Atlanta franchise's continued use of the "Braves" name and imagery. Manfred was responding to questions about whether the league would pre sure them to change identities, the way other Milwaukee Brewers Hats teams with Native American monikers have in recent years (including the Cleveland franchise, which will soon be known as the Guardians instead of the Indians)."The Native American community in that region is wholly supportive of the Braves program, including the chop," Manfred said, . "For me, that's kind of the end of the story. In that market, we're taking into account the Native Orlando Arcia Jersey American community. ...In Atlanta, they've done a great job with the Native Americans. The Native American community is the most important group to decide whether it's appropriate or not."The "chop" is the gesture Braves fans make throughout games that mimics the use of a tomahawk. , including reliever Ryan Helsley, . "It kind of devalues our Cherokee heritage and the Native-American history," . "Us as Cherokee native people went through a lot in this country." Glenn Robinson Jersey (The Braves responded by discouraging fans from doing the chop whenever he pitched during that series.)Here's video of Manfred addre sing reporters on the field in Houston: Commi sioner Rob Manfred says the Native Americans in the Atlanta Braves region are e sentially OK with the Braves. Even if that were Eric Thames Jersey true, does have an obligation to be respectful to all Native Americans? Many, after all, think the Braves perpetuate racist stereotypes. Jose de Jesus Ortiz (@OrtizKicks) Manfred's point about the region's Native Americans being supportive of the name and the chop should be scrutinized. , the Braves often point to the support they have from the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians as irrefutable evidence that all Native Americans are on board with their identity. What tends to go unnoted is that the Eastern Band is technically a busine s partner of the Braves, as their casino serves as a corporate sponsor of the team. ( .")On Wednesday, the National Congre s of American Indians released a statement, . Within the release, the NCAI criticized Manfred's comments and called upon FOX to refuse to air fans performing the chop. Here's the statement in whole: Milwaukee Brewers Jersey National Congre s of American Indians responds to Rob Manfreds a sertions about the Braves and the tomahawk chop: "Nothing could be further from the truth. Evan Drellich (@EvanDrellich) There's no inherent reason why the Braves name Travis Shaw Jersey or the chop should be viewed as sacrosanct properties. The "Braves" moniker has been used since 1941, but the franchise has also gone by names like the "Bees" and the "Doves." (Our Dayn Perry opined in January .) The chop, meanwhile, is a relatively new addition to the franchise's identity, having grown in popularity during the 1991 season, .