Since 1937 Washington, D.C. has had the football team known as the “Washington Redskins.” In my lifetime there has always been talk of the racist undertone in the name. Recently it seems to be getting more and more attention. The movement to rename the team, might have finally gotten traction.
The Redskins are in a tough situation right now since multiple sponsors have cut ties with them. Even Nike, an official partner of the NFL has removed all Redskins merchandise from their online stores due to the “offensive name”. The RFK stadium site is in jeopardy.
The Skins aren’t the only team being asked to change their name. Major League Baseball is also taking some heat through the Atlanta Braves, and the Cleveland Indians. Both teams are reported to be having internal discussions for possible name changes.
While it’s been 28 years since the Redskins last appeared in the Super Bowl and five years since they made the playoffs, they have been the face of the National Football League for as long as most of us can remember. To think they would change their name seems crazy.
This NFL offseason has been nothing short of crazy, so would we really be surprised by a name change?
While no rumors concerning name considerations have been leaked, fans wasted no time sharing their picks on Twitter. Some of the new names consist of the Washington Senators, Washington Red Tails, Washington Warriors and others.
For years Redskins’ owner Dan Snyder has been reluctant to change the team name. However, after losing a lot of money due to companies and sponsors cutting ties with the team, he has been forced to rethink his decision.
Even though the Redskins are the ones stealing the headlines about a name change, other teams have started having internal discussion about them as well. The Atlanta Braves, and Cleveland Indians are reportedly talking about their names. Unlike the Redskins, neither the Braves nor the Indians have been threatened with loss of sponsorship or merchandise sales. So far, they are untouched by that drama.
The reason those two teams could be having these discussions is they’ve seen how quickly the public turned against the Redskins. They might be pre-emptively heading off the possibility of the public turning on them.
I am not personally affected by any of the names discussed. I can see why people of Native American descent might be offended. Team names, logos, and even the mascots might be seen as insensitive to some. You have people who might not be Native Americans dressing up as Native Americans, I can see how someone might take offense. They might see it as cultural appropriation.
I guess it’s no surprise the recent events around the country have caused people to take more action to force the Redskins to make a name change.
The Redskin franchise is legendary. The name and logo are worth billions of dollars. Would it be surprising to see an actual name change?
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