Redskins

Should the Washington Redskins change their team name due to controversy with Native Americans? That has been the questions since the 1980s. There are many different views on the issue. Some people believe the name should stay, some insist it should be changed, and others are ultimately indifferent. In the end, changing the name is the definite right choice, the Washington Redskins name is offensive to the Native American people and therefore it must go. The name is not only offensive to the Native American people, but people outside of Native American 's find issue with it, and it also promotes ethnic stereotyping.

A native man being called a redskin, first time he’d ever heard the word and being offended by it.Now, that same word is the name of a football team known as The Washington Redskins.Ole Miss Rebels, a football team, had to rename the team in order to not be racist towards African Americans. The Washington Reskins, years after knowing people were emotionally hurt by the name, kept it.Many Natives protest and refuse to be a mascot, but yet the name is still on their jerseys. The Washington Redskins are aware that they are invidious to some Native Americans, but fail to change the name and feel the need to keep it.

Teams that have the name like Redskins, Indians, and Red Raiders are racist terms used as mascots. Interchange the name with the Negroes, the Jews or the Asians and that sounds even worse but, it all means the same thing. They are all racist terms that no one should use to represent something like a team name. According to racismagainstindians.org, Native Americans were banned from practicing their own religion and would be often thrown in jail if they were caught all the way up to 1978. But when nonnative people at sporting events would dance and sing their songs it would be completely okay. This makes no sense,

The word redskin is both offensive and degrading to the Native Americans, and is a word that should be banned in the United States. Most people simply think “ What is the harm in the word redskin?”. For most people they do not realize that it seems the word is harmless but it’s actually offensive to others. If we go around using this word, we are teaching young people it's okay to use the word “blackie” to african americans, or that it's okay to Caucasian“whitie”. The world also holds negative association so when you use it towards someone it seems as if you're trying to call them a hurtful name. It’s not a literal insult but it’s not something we should be saying. The National Football League has a professional team named the Washington Redskins,

The Change the Mascot campaign has made a website for people to see how big of topic this is to them. Also, on their website they’ve put out many other Native American tribes that support the changing of the name, ways to take action and even ways to contact them. They have a tab that shows the history of progress that shows that many team’s names and mascots have been changed from a racial Native American term to a more laid back name or mascot. They believe that the name and mascot should and will be changed to create more of non-racial effect among the Washington Redskins fans and community. Also, the Change the Mascot organization has put together a way to for non-Native American people to show their support by using the tag #ProudToBe Standing With #NotYourMascot on social media. Many native american tribes have actually sent out letters to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell about changing the Washington Redskins name, logo and mascot. This is a national movement of Americans across the country, both Native and non-Native alike, who are standing against racism and strongly encouraging a

Native Americans are truly offended by the team name “Red Skins”. According to “America now” page 71: “Non-native Americans might not understand how deep the term “redskins” cuts into ancient wounds that never quite healed and maybe it’s not reasonable to expect them to because of the hurt they feel. Every time Dan Snyder refuses to change his NFL team’s name, even with tribes paying for powerful ads in opposition, the wounds of Native Americans seem to continue to bleed and may even be cut a bit more deeper…Snyder plunges a long twisted blade into our hearts (Holmes, 71).

Native Americans are often offended by racist nicknames, logos, and stereotypes in sports. The Washington Redskins and many other teams are facing this.

Offensive names such as the Redskins are insulting to Native Americans. The term Redskins is a disparaging and derogatory name for our Native Americans. Former Redskin player

Since the mid-1900s, the questionable legacy of Native American names used as sports mascots has sparked debate across the United States. "After 81 years, the Washington Redskins name continues to hold the memories and meaning of where we come from, who we are, and who we want to be in the years to come," Washington’s NFL owner, Dan Snyder, declared when faced with condemnations of the controversial name. While many uphold Snyder’s statement, others are offended, and are determined to eliminate all team mascots with Native American symbolism. However, the Washington Redskins are not alone in the debate against Native American logos and mascots. Any sports team should be allowed to represent themselves by using Native American words.

“The Center for Indigenous Peoples Studies at California State University in San Bernardino surveyed 400 individuals, 98 of them Native Americans, and found that 67 percent of Native Americans agreed the "Redskins team name is a racial or racist word and symbol."” (Steele). Some mascots are offensive and racist to certain cultures and races. In, 2005, the NCAA banned schools with Native American mascots from hosting a national championship game (ProQuest Staff). Changing the mascot won’t change the history of the school or team. Some people feel unwelcome because of certain mascots. Some mascots should be banned because they are stereotypical, dishonor cultures, and are offensive.

The Washington Redskins should change their name because it’s describing the skin of the Native Americans as red and that’s racist. In the Boston Globe article it states

Have you ever wonder what is the big deal with teams with Native Americans name? I'm going to tell you about the argument with teams that have Native Americans such as the Washington Redskins. With a lot of people trying to get the Washington Redskins to change their because it's racist, they still don't because the cost of name change and uniforms, and quiet simply their is not enough support to change it.

One reading from Fivethirtyeight debates the argument to change the Native American mascot names. This is a valid argument because for example the name redskins, the name of the NFL football team located in Washington D.C, can be seen and viewed as disparaging to native americans. Naming teams and especially professional teams after native american tribes can become very controversial. (https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-2128-native-american-mascots-people-arent-talking-about/)

Imagine this: thousands of stands congregating in a stadium to cheer on their football team. They are all dressed up in their football jerseys and have their face painted to support their beloved football team. Their mascot? The blacks. On all of their jerseys, flags, on the field have their mascot painted on. The mascot is a derogatory depiction of the average black person and the stereotypes that are often associated with black people. How is this scenario of having a black person as a mascot any different than having an Indian or Native American as a mascot? It is not any different. Mascots such as the Cleveland Indians and the Washington Redskins are derogatory and offense depictions of Native Americans, and schools and organizations that allow these mascots to stay in place are promoting racism.

I agree with you and its not offensive because it shows their pride and respect for their team and if they don't like the team then, they don't have to support the team. I strongly agree with your saying respect and pride towards the team. I am not a big fan of the football team and I don't think this should be an