The PWHL received a letter signed by 100 fans in October calling for decolonization of the Toronto Sceptres name and logo. On December 15, it will mark 10 years since Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission released 94 calls to action.
When the PWHL unveiled the name and logo for the Toronto Sceptres, many fans immediately called out the league for their decision to brand a team using colonial symbolism representing monarchical power.
While the name and logo have been accepted unquestioned by some, efforts by a group of fans continues seeking the decolonization the team's branding in the name of truth and reconciliation.
The CBC's Shireen Ahmed was one of the first to publicly question the branding. Ahmed spoke to noted Indigenous scholars who brought up issues not only with the monarchy's ties to the genocide of Indigenous peoples in Canada, but also to LGBTQ+ people being outlawed and degraded in the Victorian era, which was also a time when women "had few legal or personal rights."
The PWHL originally used imagery of Queen Elizabeth I, which they've since deleted, and cited Toronto's nickname as the 'Queen City,' a moniker stemming from Queen Victoria, as inspiration for the branding.
As Toronto Metropolitan University's Jessica Pincente wrote of the Sceptres' branding, "Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth I are contemporary symbols of empire and colonialism, and we cannot simply pick and choose to extract symbols of power and strength from their initial colonial contexts and glorify them as symbols of modern day sporting success."
It was a message echoed by a letter sent to the PWHL by fans this Fall.
Fans Sent Letter To The PWHL
In October, a letter with 100 signatories was sent to the PWHL. That letter was provided to The Hockey News by Stacey Mortimer, a PhD student at the University of Guelph and Research Assistant with the Conservation Through Reconciliation Partnership, who has been leading the movement. The letter outlined the group's concerns with the Toronto Sceptres' name and logo. Mortimer and the rest of the 100 signatories reaffirmed their "call to decolonize the PWHL, beginning with the renaming and rebranding of the Toronto franchise to reflect a culturally appropriate and respectful identity within the context of Toronto and Canada in 2025."
In recent years, a number of professional sports teams have undergone rebranding efforts to recognize the impact their names and logos had on Indigenous peoples, and on normalizing symbols of white supremacy and racism. Namely, the now Washington Commanders, Edmonton Elks, and Cleveland Guardians are a few of the more notable sports franchises to rename their teams. The efforts haven't fully made their way to hockey. While some, like the minor hockey Mississauga Reps have made changes, others like the Chicago Blackhawks, and now Toronto Sceptres, have not.
The letter praised the league for bringing professional women's hockey to Toronto and the power of professional women's sport to inspire, uplift, and unify. But it also outlined the harm done to Black, Indigenous, and LGBTQ+ individuals through colonization and the monarchy.
"Your messaging glorifies colonial power, a racist, heteropatriarchal power that has inflicted genocide, land theft, slavery, and cultural erasure across the globe," they wrote. "This same power continues to shape inequity, systemic racism, and intergenerational trauma here in Canada and in communities worldwide. The sceptre is not a neutral image. It represents monarchy, empire, and centuries of oppression."
"The joy and success of women’s hockey should not come at the cost of glorifying colonialism and colonial symbolism. We believe in a league that is accessible and inclusive for all young women and girls regardless of background, identity, or heritage. A game where fans feel fully welcome, celebrated, and seen," the letter continued.
Since sending the letter, Mortimer and her co-signees have receive no communication from the league. They called on the PWHL in their letter, requesting the league "change the branding of PWHL Toronto," "acknowledge the harm caused," and "commit to a decolonized future."
Indigenous Scholars Weigh In
"If professional sport - and especially hockey - is to contribute meaningfully to decolonization in Canada, by using its commercial influence to strengthen relationships, foster a sense of community, and create spaces of belonging, then selecting a team name that celebrates Canada’s colonial heritage works against those goals," University of British Columbia professor Janice Forsyth wrote to The Hockey News.
Forsyth is one of Canada's leading scholars in the area of Indigenous sport, decolonization, and sport's use as a settler colonial tool at residential schools. She's also the author and editor of several books on the topic including Beyond the Rink: Behind the Images of Residential School Hockey (2025), Decolonizing Sport (2023), and the award winning Reclaiming Tom Longboat: Indigenous Self-Determination in Canadian Sport (2020).
According to Forsyth, while Toronto's name does not singularly meet the threshold for being considered racist, it is problematic and does not reflect efforts to decolonize sport, or to position the team or league as a beacon of inclusion.
"It sends a conflicting message at a time when many organizations are striving to demonstrate cultural awareness and social responsibility," Forsyth wrote. "If the intent is truly to build an inclusive and forward-looking environment, this naming choice is a curious and counterproductive strategy. I'm not sure “Sceptres" by itself meets the threshold to be called racist, but it is definitely debatable and problematic from the perspective of reconciliation, history and social context. If the team genuinely wants to position itself as inclusive and socially conscious (especially in a modern Canadian context), choosing a name rooted in colonial symbolism sends a message that doesn’t fully reflect those values."
Dr. Christine O'Bonsawin, a professor of history and Indigenous studies at the University of Victoria and member the Odanak Nation echoed Forsyth's concerns. As the co-editor of the Decolonizing Sport (2023), O'Bonsawin has also dedicated much of her research and teaching to decolonizing physical activity and sport in Canada.
"Indeed, hockey has long been heralded as Canada’s national winter sport. However, it also serves as a powerful cultural tool in the country’s nation-building project, advancing settler belonging and affirming myths of a unified northern identity," O'Bonsawin wrote to The Hockey News.
"This has, in turn, contributed to the normalization of the dispossession of Indigenous territories and the erasure of an Indigenous presence. After all, many Canadians associate the rise of hockey with a barren, unoccupied landscape. In the current era of reconciliation, challenging the name of the Toronto Sceptres highlights that decolonizing sport is not only about removing caricatures of Indigenous peoples but also about challenging symbols that celebrate the authority and values of empire and settler colonialism."
The PWHL's Stance
The open letter was not the first time the PWHL has heard from concerned fans on the matter.
In 2024 after attending a gathering of the Office of the Independent Special Interlocutor for Missing Children and Unmarked Graves and Burial Sites associated with Indian Residential Schools, Mortimer hand delivered a copy of the the group's final report to PWHL vice president Chris Burkett. The report, bound by a piece of hide string, was gifted with the intent of supporting tangible action toward truth and reconciliation within the PWHL.
Mortimer also pointed to the fact the PWHL scrubbed their social media accounts of all videos and imagery related to Toronto's branding that included Queen Elizabeth and other monarchical figures, attempting to shift the meaning of the branding after the launch, following critique of the symbolism. On another occasion, Mortimer reported being asked to put away the group's "Every Child Matters" flag by a PWHL staff member while cheering at Coca-Cola Coliseum in Toronto. "Every Child Matters" is a reconciliation movement in Canada recognizing the harm done to Indigenous youth and families through the residential schools.
The Hockey News reached out to the PWHL asking for comment on the group's open "letter, their requests, and the league's stance on the legacy of anti-Black racism, LGBTQ+ erasure, and the genocide of Indigenous peoples outlined, which the group feels the Sceptres name and logo celebrate."
THN also asked how the feedback relates to "the league's next wave of branding that occurred this summer, if the league consulted Indigenous communities and leaders in Vancouver and Seattle to consult before selecting a name."
The PWHL responded with the following.
“The PWHL is committed to supporting and uplifting diverse communities. Through initiatives like our Unity Games, partnerships and collaboration with various community organizations, events in the community, and season-long engagement with local non-profits at PWHL games, we strive to ensure our league remains a welcoming and inclusive space for everyone.”
In 2024-25, the Toronto Sceptres hosted an "Indigenous Peoples Celebration" at their March 19 home game, and will again host a similar event March 29 this season as part of the league's Unity Games. The group of signatories however are seeking action and change from the PWHL to decolonize Toronto's branding, and listen to the voices of Indigenous communities and scholars, rather than hosting a once annual themed game.
Ten Years Of Truth And Reconciliation
December 15 of this year will mark ten years since the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada released their findings and report, including 94 calls to action. Among those calls to action were five relating directly to sport.
Those calls to action included public education telling the national story of Indigenous athletes in history (#87); ensuring long-term development plans for Indigenous athletes including support for the North American Indigenous Games (#88); ensuring policies are in place "to promote physical activity as a fundamental element of health and well-being, reduce barriers to sports participation, increase the pursuit of excellence in sport, and build capacity in the Canadian sport system" for Indigenous athletes (#89); funding for diverse culture sport programming, anti-racism awareness and training, and culture education (#90); and that host countries for the Olympics and other major events ensure that Inidigenous people's "territorial protocols are respected" and that Indigenous communities are engaged in planning and participating in events (#91).
Without response from the PWHL to Indigenous communities or the group of women's hockey supporters who signed the open letter to the league, it's unclear if or when the league will address the concerns raised related to truth and recconciliation.
As the open letter to the PWHL claims, "The Toronto branding and messaging disrespects a decade of complex Truth and Reconciliation processes on these lands. It silences the voices of thousands of Indigenous survivors and witnesses of Canada’s Indian Residential School system. It forgets the untold numbers of Indigenous children’s souls that have yet to be returned home as they remain missing and disappeared in unmarked burials and graves across this country. The Toronto branding renders invisible the ongoing crisis that is the genocide of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2Spirited people in Canada and across North America."