How ironic is it that as we gear up to celebrate Thanksgiving, a holiday that supposedly celebrates the bond between early settlers and Native Americans, that one of the biggest debates in sports right now is whether or not the Washington Redskins should change their name? This has been a battle between indigenous tribes and the NFL for years, but it looks as though the movement is finally gaining some ground.
Many influential figures in Washington, including the President, have called for the Redskins to take action, but Dan Snyder, their owner, has remained defiant. The situation has become so hotly contested that large groups have protested in front of team busses as Washington arrives at road games, and a group even bought tickets to a recent home game to launch a protest from inside the stadium. This is one of those rare situations when sports and civil rights have become intertwined, and the debate should only heat up from here.
On campus, we have somewhat of an expert of Native American issues among us. Professor Josh Reid is Snohomish, a tribal nation from Washington State, and he is an assistant professor of History, as well as the head of the Indigenous Studies department.
When asked about his thoughts on the everyday use of the word “Redskins”, he said, “for me, that needs to change. It’s anachronistic. Why is there a sports team still called the Redskins? Particularly a team based out of our nation’s capital? Here it is, this terrible racial slur being used as the name of the team. How would other people feel if it was called something else? Fill in whatever racial slur you want there.”
Reid was able to shed some light on the history of the movement to change the name, and also about why he believes that the issue is finally moving in the right direction. He said, “native peoples have been upset about this for a while. There have been court cases that have been attempted… for me it really comes down to the faulty assumption that Indians have disappeared or the notion that any Indians that are left are not ‘real Indians’, so why are they griping or complaining about this anyhow?”
The Redskins are just one of a number of teams that have Native American based names. According to Reid, a Redskins name change is certainly the top priority. He said “Redskins is definitely the worst [nickname]. I’d like to see Chiefs and Braves also changed.” He added, “it’s not just the derogatory nature of the term Redskins, but it’s also the belittling of native peoples, with mascots of this type, that are just gross caricatures. Think of the older mascots of the Chiefs and the Braves, they are over the top racist caricatures that give a false impression of native peoples.”
When asked why the NFL is moving so slowly on this issue, Reid suggested that the main motivating force was financial. He said, “I start with Dan Snyder (the owner of the Redskins). From the owner’s perspective, this is a money issue. It costs a lot to rebrand a team. I also think that Snyder has backed himself into a corner on this issue by running his mouth off trying to bully native people into accepting it and coming to terms with a racial slur like this.” He added, “as far as the NFL, they should really just own up and say that this is simply not allowed.”
Reid was also quick to add that this issue is interwoven with many of the biggest issues facing the league today. He exclaimed, “it seems like there are a host of issues in professional football that are coming to a head. Whether it’s the Redskins issue, concussions, or this locker room culture, bullying BS that is all over the news… I think this is all kind of part of the macho and masculine culture of football; it seems to permit these types of behaviors and attitudes. I wonder what kind of connections can be made from that? Maybe this is a chance for the NFL to grow up a bit.”
Reid says that there really is no chance to compromise on this particular issue, but in past cases, such as with the Florida State Seminoles, compromises have been reached between native peoples and teams where the teams were able to maintain some of their pregame ceremonies and mascot depictions but eliminated certain aspects that were especially offensive.
A major concern of his is how the mascots affect young Native Americans and how they interfere with their sense of identity. He said, “studies conclusively show that derogatory terms attached to mascots and sports teams have strong negative impacts on children. Those are the ones that I’m concerned about.” He added, “there are a number of adult natives that are like ‘yeah, I’m used to it, what’s the big deal?’ and there are others who are upset about it. What’s important to me are future generations, the youth, and how this affects their development, self-image, and place in society.
It appears as though this issue will rage on into the new year with no end in sight, but the public opinion is palpably starting to shift. It’s foolish to think that Native Americans have been insignificant in the history of the NFL. The first president of the league, Jim Thorpe, was Native American, from the Sac and Fox and Potawatomi nations. In 1922 and 1923, the league fielded an all-native team, the Oorang Indians. The Redskins were founded in Boston in the early 1930s and among their early gimmicks was to dress the head coach in a traditional headdress and have players perform caricatured Native dances at halftime at Fenway Park. While the team has come a long way since then, Native Americans agree that the name has to go. The movement is starting to gain momentum and before long, it will come to a head.