The Washington Redskins, a team that every football fan should be familiar with, find themselves in the midst of another racial controversy. These types of issues have plagued the franchises' storied history, except this time around the dispute is not about the personnel on the team, but rather the team's name. The reason that this controversy is picking up steam is because more and more people are starting to realize that the word "redskin" is actually considered to be a racial slur and is offensive to many Native Americans. People are understanding that the offensive term is an unfit name for any sports team, especially for a franchise that is as old and iconic as the one in Washington D.C. This has been a back and forth issue over the past few decades but the people against the team name recently won a small victory when federal Judge Gerald Bruce Lee ruled to cancel the team's trademark protection for their logo and team name stating, "that the logo might denigrate Native Americans". (Martin) While it is a step in the right direction to seeing change, there is still a long way to go especially since Dan Snyder, the owner of the Washington Redskins, has made it clear that he will do everything in his power to keep the name and logo the way it is. Its imperative that the Washington Redskins rebrand their team since not only is their name widely considered to be an offensive term towards Native Americans, but it's unfair to subject them to the inaccurate stereotype that the team perpetuates.

The first known instance of the word "redskin" is unknown and is often debated by researchers who study historical linguistics. The word is believed to be coined by colonial Europeans as it was the easiest way to label Native Americans without knowing what tribe or region that they were from. (Reid) It only began to be seen as having a racist connotation when relations between the settlers and Native Americans worsened that they began to call the natives "redskins" in an offensive manner. 

When defending the team's name, many people talk about the words origin including Bruce Allen, who is the president of the Washington Redskins organization. In a letter to senator Harry Reid, Allen argues that "The term redskins originated as a Native American expression of solidarity.", which he believes to be one of the key reason's the team should keep the name. (Allen) However, he ignores the fact that words have the ability to change overtime. A term's original meaning should have less of an impact than its present day meaning since when people react to words, they respond to its current connotation, not what it meant hundreds of years ago. But even with that, the word's origin does not support the team name as much Allen had made it out to be, since the term was originated during the colonization of the new world where Native Americans were the victims of countless tragedies caused by the settlers. (Reid) That period of history and the word "redskin" are intertwined, when talking about one you must discuss the other. It was one of the darkest times in Native American history that many people try to ignore but you can not disregard it when discussing how the term "redskin" came about. Centuries ago, it might not have been considered a slur but it became one over time and it should be treated as such.

When faced with opposition to the Redskins name, the organization says that the team was named the Redskins to honor Native Americans and in no way should it be seen as offensive. (Allen) The team decided to choose the Redskins for their name in 1933 where it was was deemed acceptable because of their less political correct society, however had the team been founded in 2016 where people are much more progressive, there is no chance the Redskins would have been even be remotely considered to be the name. In present day, a proposed "redskin" sports team name would be met with protests and outrage. Regardless of someone's stance on the issue I feel as though most people would be willing to agree with the previous statement. Which makes it interesting as to why more people aren't supportive of changing the name. My main reasoning behind this is that the redskins that 99% of people who follow the sport have only known the team as the Washington Redskins. For many fans of the team, it is hard to accept when out of the blue something you've known all your life is labeled as insensitive and politically incorrect. 

So far, most people have brushed off the allegations but others, including many prominent people in our society have looked into the issue to see the problems that the Washington name and logo have caused. One of the most influential person supporting a change is President Barack Obama. When asked about the Redskins name he replied, "Snyder should think about changing the name" (Bank). He also thought that Native American's resentment of the term "redskin" should be considered more important then other's connection to the name. The problem that people against the team name are facing is that many people just do not see how the name is offensive. But, an interesting thought that people on both sides of the issue should be able to agree on is that if you were to call a pure blood Native American a redskin to his face he would almost certainly find it to be offensive. Defenders of the name would of course argue that the team name is used in a non-offensive context, but in no way should it still be seen as acceptable. A slur is a slur regardless of context and if you wouldn't say "redskin" to a Native American, it should not be ok to chant it on Sundays.

 While I do believe supporters do not think they were being offensive, it is hard to believe that a clearly offensive name and a stereotypical logo was made to honor Native Americans, but it is the narrative that the organization is pushing. Darren Reid, a journalist who wrote about the controversy, wrote "You cannot force your own construct of honor on another group of people if they reject it." (Reid). Many Native Americans have rejected it but their voices continue to be unheard. Like people of all races, Native Americans should have the ability to decide how they are represented, it shouldn't be chosen for them. The Washington Redskins are constantly saying they are not trying to offend anyone with their team name, but the way the organization sees the term "redskin" is much different then how some Native Americans see it. (Nunberg) The Redskins trademark attorney Bob Raskopf was quoted saying, "That's not what this case is about. It's what our words means. You need to put the word in context." (Nunberg). 

It's illogical to think that the team can trademark a word and completely change its connotation, words mean different things to different people. Suzanne Harjo, a member of the Cheyenne tribe in Oklahoma, said "We were called a lot of names, including the name of the Washington football team and that's the worst thing you can be called ... Out of nowhere, interrupting your daydreams, would come this word being thrown at you. I just grew up hating it" (Peirano). Harjo and many other Native Americans want nothing to do with that word, regardless of the context the team puts it in. It's saddening to think that Harjo and many like her are unable to escape the term "redskin" regardless of how progressive the United States becomes. Had it not been for Washington choosing that name, the word "redskin" would rarely be heard of again along with several other dated, offensive terms that should not have a place in today's society 

In this fight over the name, the Washington Redskins hold all the power and the group of Native American's who find the team name to be offensive are forced to accept the stereotype being imposed on them. Their only way to force the team to change is by gaining support from outside sources. The problem they are having with this is that most Americans that have been polled don't see the name as being offensive and are in favor of keeping it. The reason for this is that many people, especially sports fans, have a strong connection with the team and are inherently bias when discussing the controversy. When discussing social issues like this one, even though the majority of Americans support the name it doesn't mean they are morally right. This has been shown time and time again as people become more accepting and understanding to others. The can be seen as recent as same-sex marriage, where even a mere twenty years ago nobody would have imagined that it would be legal today. People's opinions are becoming more progressive with each passing year which leads me to believe that eventually enough people are going to realize the racial problems with the Redskins branding and they will be forced to make a change. 

If the decision to change the team name was determined solely by ethics, then the team would undoubtedly be forced to rebrand. It's important to note that the Washington Redskins are a privately owned organization and their main goal is to make money. People from the organization constantly talk about how they shouldn't have to change the team name since it was made to honor Native Americans and that they couldn't just throw away 81 years of history and tradition that the team has. But if people stopped going to games, buying merchandise, etc. to such a degree that the team started to lose more money then they are comfortable with parting with, I guarantee they would throw that history and tradition out the window without a second thought and rebrand as soon as possible. 

It's troubling to hear Daniel Snyder describe how he travels to meet and listen to prominent Native American leaders to get a better understanding on their side of the issue but then also states that he will never change the team name for as long as he lives. It almost seems patronizing to the Native Americans by having Snyder talk to these people knowing that even if some of them told him how the name "redskin" was incredibly offensive to them, he wouldn't do a thing about it. He has no desire to do such a thing since not only is he a lifelong fan of the team but he'd lose tons of money in the process. If the team were to be forced to rebrand today, they would stand to lose millions of dollars. They would have to redesign their name and logo they would have to change and update everything such as the stadium, practice fields, their headquarters, etc. Not only would that process cost a fortune but it would also destroy their brand. The Washington Redskins are currently the 8th most valuable sports team in the United States and the 3rd most valuable, they would be forced to build the brand from the ground up which Snyder will do everything in his power to stop from happening. In defense of this, personal from the Redskins organization and other journalists routinely bring up a Annenburg poll conducted in 2003 which states that out of 768 Native Americans surveyed, 90% of Native Americans didn't think the name was offensive. (Annenberg Public Policy Center). When citing this poll, they believe it makes it an undisputable fact that Native Americans aren't offended by the name while also ignoring the glaring issues with the poll. For starters, if they conducted this poll today, thirteen years after the original, the number wanting it changed would almost certainly be higher since then because not only has the controversy gotten more coverage, but also won support from prominent members of the football community like Tony Dungey and Terry Bradshaw. Aside from that, the poll showed other inconsistency in its polling method, Native American identification method, as well as it sample size. When looking at each piece of evidence the team presents in defense of the team name, it becomes more and more clear that the team wants to keep the team name for themselves, not for Native Americans. I feel that if more people realized this then there would be much more support given to Native Americans and their cause.

One of the most harmful parts of the Washington Redskins' brand is that it portrays Native Americans in an inaccurate stereotype. Native Americans and their problems are constantly being ignored partially because people view them in the stereotypical sense that our culture portrays Native Americans. People see them in their characterized fashion and forget that they are real people facing far greater problems then the Redskins name. The quality of life for some Native Americans living on reservations is way lower than it should as many of the Native Americans are unemployed, they rely on aid from the United States government to survive. This is just one example of the problems native Americans are facing today, I'd concede that on their list of things they are currently worrying about, the name of NFL team should be near the bottom of that list. But by having the name controversy in the news, I believe that it's a stepping stone to greater change. By having Native Americans and their issues in the news, it reminds people that they still exist and that they need our help. Ray Halbritter, the representative of the Oneida Indian Nation, was outspoken on this aspect of the Washington Redskins name saying, "Many have tried to pretend that the campaign to change the mascot is not a serious civil rights issue. [Americans] most explicit and direct contact with the very idea of Native American culture is the Washington team's bigoted name." (Vargas). Because of the way that the team portrays Native Americans people think of Native American culture has stereotypical head dressers, bows and arrows and other things often associated with Native Americans. An example of this would be Chief Zee, a redskins' fan who many consider to be the Washington Redskins unofficial mascot. Chief Zee attends games wearing an Indian costume which includes a giant headdress as well painting part of his face with paint. Not only does Chief Zee not have any actual connection to Native American ancestry but things like this continuous to give people an inaccurate representation on modern Native Americans and their culture. Because of this many Americans view of Native Americans is still primitive and outdated. Regardless of how this is from reality, there is almost nothing Native Americans can do to get rid of this way of thinking. Their culture is being defined from an outside perspective and they are too small of a minority to make an impact. The first step to getting rid of this grossly inaccurate stereotype is by getting rid of cultural forces that portray them in that light. 

When people hear the word "Redskins", depending on who they are and where they come from will have a massive impact on how they react towards it. While one person might instantly think of a football team they love, another might think of the true nature of the word how it was used against their ancestors and quite possibly used against them as well. Football is just a game after all, teams in all sports relocate and rebrand all the time but do people really think its ok to subject offended Natives Americans to it just because fans are too attached to the Washington Redskins. In reality, it would be the same players, playing in the same city, in the same stadium with the only thing being different from before would be the name and the colors. The people against the Redskins name have been making small steps on a long road, that doesn't have an end in sight. Snyder has the money and the influence that far exceeds what the opposing Native Americans have available. At this moment in time it seems that there is little Native Americans can do since the controversy has recently fallen out of media headlines. The debate over the name always seems to have a resurgence in the media when the Redskins start getting national coverage which is typically rewarded for good play throughout the season. But considering the ineptitude of the team and the organization running in, those years are few and far between. Considering Snyder's passion for keeping the name its unclear if he will ever break on the issue, the only hope is for people to realize what the name represents and the offense that it causes.

