Since
owner Mr. Snyder has been so adamant that as long as he is in power over the
Red Skins, the nickname “Redskins” will never change. Though it seems the more
The Redskins organization tries to fight this issue, the more it becomes a
controversial distraction. During Cowboys week for the Redskins the controversy
surrounding the team’s nickname grew to the peak of a sports media head light
topic of discussion.
Even President Barack Obama with all he has on his plate
right now, couldn’t help but to chime in on this issue. But the focus
should be on football for the
Redskins, not politics. Something needs to be done to bring the focus back
where to it belongs. On football.
Being a
fan of the Redskins I understand Snyder’s reasoning for not wanting to
change the name. Many Redskins fans do not think of the word as
a racial slur, but view it as a word that means victory and invokes
positive feelings. When fans hear the name it reminds them of the days of
glory gone by. Like when the great Joe Gibbs led the team to
its three Super Bowl wins in the 80′s and 90′s, and so keeping the name
helps them to hold on to those feelings.
But I will admit when I became a
Redskins fan as a child, I didn’t know the word began as a racial slur, it was
just the name of my favorite team. But times change, and
what may have been acceptable years ago isn’t necessarily
acceptable today.
Now I would believe that logic
suggests that you don’t choose to name a team after something you don’t
admire. That wouldn’t make sense, would it? But the
fighting spirit of Native American tribes instilled an admiration of that
spirit into their enemies. This is the original idea behind the name of the
team. This is why so many football teams adopted American Indian names, to try
to emulate that fighting spirit on the football field. But it all seems a
little misguided now. Native Americans are no longer warriors, and there
is so much more of their culture that should rise to the forefront of interest
for all Americans besides this idea that they were great warriors.
But you can’t always make changes on
a whim of political correctness simply because someone doesn’t like
something about your product. However, this controversy is much more than
a whim. It’s become a major thorn in the side for the franchise, and
it’s time to pull the thorn out. By changing the name, Daniel Snyder can
bring positive feelings and reverence to the franchise, and lift
the weight of negativity that’s engulfing it. It’s hard enough fighting
for victory on the football field, but with this issue, the Redskins
organization has to constantly fight a public relations battle
off the field as well. A battle to justify the use of
the Redskins name. Is money the justification? I’m sure re-branding
could cost the team and the NFL $millions, which more than
likely adds to owner Daniel Snyder’s reluctance to change.
So I ask you what is more important
to a team and its fan base, the team’s brand of football, or the
brand name of the football team. In the end, it’s a team’s
winning brand of football that defines it. Along with its
owners, its players, its coaches, its history, and most importantly its fans,
all work to define and formulate the essence of a team. Not a
nickname. It’s time to end the distraction and get back to enjoying the game.
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