A Fox Station TV license is being challenged over "Redskins"

[jwolfer]

Time is a major component.  The Aztecs (or the Mongols, or even Alexander the Great) all did their brutality centuries ago.  In contrast, there are still people alive today who were directly affected by the Holocaust.  While nobody today bemoans the actions of the Aztecs, if you teleported someone from a conquered tribe in that time period to the present day, they probably wouldn't easily "get over it" if at all.

True

It doesn't matter. Would the Armenian genocide be less hurtful if it had happened 500 years ago? What about the Holodomor? Are the Crusades and the Spanish Inquisition's evil actions forgiven because so much time has passed?

If it happens to you or your parents its more real than your 4x great grandmother being raped.. You can feel empathy, understand emotions but its just not as palpable and " real". More of an abstract.. Sort of like reading about a mom of 4 dying in a car accident across town. You have a moment of sadness but you go on to the next story in the news. Now if it were your sister or mom you would be devastated.

[Grzrd]

Before the Braves moved to Atlanta from Milwaukee, the city's baseball team was the Crackers. There had also been at one point a Negro League team called the Atlanta Black Crackers. Interestingly, the Braves wore Black Crackers throwbacks in honor of Civil Rights Weekend as recently as 2011:

http://projects.ajc.com/gallery/view/sports/braves/braves-phillies-051411/10.html

As far as I can tell, the Black Crackers did not have a mascot.



Another interesting story revolves around the Fightin' Whities:

[hbelkins]

As for the nickname of the professional baseball team from the Mistake on the Lake, it's named after a baseball player. I think his name was Chief Sockalexis but I could be mistaken.

What bugs me is the use of the term "African Americans" for people with dark skin. What's wrong with using a term equivalent to caucasian for them, especially since 9/10s of them aren't from Africa and you'd have to go back several generations to find true African natives?

We have at least two high school teams in my area whose nickname is "Indians" and one of them has an unofficial nickname of "The Tribe." A now-closed school's nickname was Navajos. Whether or not they had permission from the Navajo Nation to use the name in the same way as Florida State does Seminoles is beyond me.

I saw a story about protests about the Redskins' nickname at a Minnesota Vikings game and someone mentioned the Vikings' nickname. One response was,"Viking is an occupation, Redskin is a slur."

That story also noted that someone from Kentucky went to Minneapolis to protest. My question is, "Why?"

[jeffandnicole]

That story also noted that someone from Kentucky went to Minneapolis to protest. My question is, "Why?"

In the Ferguson riots days after the original shooting, many of those arrested were from far away areas.  They simply wanted to go down to Ferguson and riot. 

What I want to know is where they got the money and time (well, I probably know the answer to both) to do that.

[NE2]

What bugs me is the use of the term "African Americans" for people with dark skin. What's wrong with using a term equivalent to caucasian for them?

I don't get this, not even in the deluded wingnut sense of a few other recent posts in this thread. What would be more equivalent? Nubian?

[Brandon]

Time is a major component.  The Aztecs (or the Mongols, or even Alexander the Great) all did their brutality centuries ago.  In contrast, there are still people alive today who were directly affected by the Holocaust.  While nobody today bemoans the actions of the Aztecs, if you teleported someone from a conquered tribe in that time period to the present day, they probably wouldn't easily "get over it" if at all.

And now we celebrate desecrate the Aztecs by naming a car after them.

FIFY.  It usually is rated as one of the worst cars ever due to design.  The similar Buick Rondevous sold much better due to a much better wrapper.

[Pete from Boston]

I agree! It paints Scandinavians as savages.

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish must be changed because of the negative stereotype that Irishmen are hot tempered and will fight at the drop of a hat.

The Saint Mary's Gaels must be changed as well as it is named after an ethnic group. We are Gaels, not zoo animals and we shouldn't have a team named after us.

After all, fair is fair. If we're going to change one mascot because it is "racist" then we must change them all.

Unlike the Indians, the Vikings and the Irish don't exist in a broken social state created very specifically for the enrichment of white America, from which this country benefits tremendously while they continue to pay the price.

So, using those groups' identity to sell a product worth billions of dollars while they trudge through poverty and ignominy is, shall we say, less of an issue.

But, of course, you knew that already.

[Brandon]

Another interesting story revolves around the Fightin' Whities:

Nice.  Now, we need teams called the "Blondes" or the "Red(head)s". 

/Skin color - blah.  Hair color is far more important.

[Pete from Boston]

What bugs me is the use of the term "African Americans" for people with dark skin. What's wrong with using a term equivalent to caucasian for them?

I don't get this, not even in the deluded wingnut sense of a few other recent posts in this thread. What would be more equivalent? Nubian?

"Caucasian" is the ridiculous one.  It is the equivalent of referring to East Asians as Mongoloids.  Not that "white" is accurate, but it's less rooted in nutty Classicist theories of human "races."

[bing101]

Some High Schools have an Apache as a Football Team Mascot I'm not sure How Many in the USA. but the City of Vallejo
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vallejo_High_School

Vallejo High School in Solano County Changed their Mascot the Redhawks Recently.

I'm not sure How Many School Districts are still in a lawsuit over the Apache name.

[Brandon]

Some High Schools have an Apache as a Football Team Mascot I'm not sure How Many in the USA. but the City of Vallejo
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vallejo_High_School

Vallejo High School in Solano County Changed their Mascot the Redhawks Recently.

To really be scary, they should've called themselves the Germans and used a panzer for a mascot. 

[Big John]

there was a minor-league baseball team called the Crackers:

[Alps]

What bugs me is the use of the term "African Americans" for people with dark skin. What's wrong with using a term equivalent to caucasian for them?

I don't get this, not even in the deluded wingnut sense of a few other recent posts in this thread. What would be more equivalent? Nubian?

a) I don't even get why we bother trying to categorize people in races anymore. Hopefully that ceases soon.
b) Until it does, the correct answer is "what does this group want to be called?" That's how we evolved from Negro (and worse) to African American. One day they may decide they want to be called "American."

[hbelkins]

One day they may decide they want to be called "American."

They already are, if they're citizens. If Stevie Wonder or Michael Jordan or Barack Obama move to France, they're not African-Americans anymore.

[bing101]

https://www.facebook.com/10405440140/photos/a.218812655140.170784.10405440140/10152716964845141/?type=1&theater


Seen this the Chicago Blackhawks have a Native Chief as its logo.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logos_and_uniforms_of_the_Kansas_City_Chiefs


Or this the Chiefs have an Arrowhead Logo. Some cultures may dispute its purpose here,

[Brandon]

https://www.facebook.com/10405440140/photos/a.218812655140.170784.10405440140/10152716964845141/?type=1&theater


Seen this the Chicago Blackhawks have a Native Chief as its logo.

The Blackhawks (aka Black Hawks) are named after a very specific person, important in Illinois history - Chief Black Hawk.  It is not, and never has been just a generic native chief logo.

[bugo]

I would be proud for a team to name themselves after my ethnicit(ies). "Dallas Mongrels", "New York Mutts", or "1/16th Jews".

[Pete from Boston]

I would be proud for a team to name themselves after my ethnicit(ies). "Dallas Mongrels", "New York Mutts", or "1/16th Jews".

I get the feeling that "Redskins" is viewed more like "New York Hymies" than it is like "New York Jews."

[Henry]

It's not like the Redskins are moving to L.A.! So why penalize a TV station located 3,000 miles from their main fan base for mentioning a team name that won't be going away anytime soon? There are the Atlanta Braves, Kansas City Chiefs and Golden State Warriors to name a few, and you don't see those names singled out in nearly the same way that the Redskins are...at least not yet anyway.

[triplemultiplex]

So what's the argument for not changing this racist team name again?  What changes if Washington becomes, I dunno, the Sentinels (the team name in the movie "The Replacements")?  Is anyone going to stop watching football?  Stop going to games?
I'll tell you what will happen when they eventually change that name.  It'll be a big hubbub for a few days, then everyone will buy new shirts and move on.

This slippery slope fallacy about other team names is a distraction.  Washington's name is in extremely poor taste especially since the team is located in the market with the seat of government; the same government that spent over a century committing genocide against this continent's indigenous peoples.

Eat your damn vegetables and change the stupid name, Dan Snyder.


Until then:

[corco]

Part of it might be that last time they renamed a Washington team to be politically correct, they picked the Wizards, which is just about the lamest, most minor-league sounding possible name. I'm more pro-Bullet than pro-Redskin as a team name though.

My thought is that the name-change is inevitable. Snyder will continue taking as much press out of it as possible (bad press is good press) and eventually will change the name, prompting the sale of merchandise. He's just milking the cow dry first.

[oscar]

Part of it might be that last time they renamed a Washington team to be politically correct, they picked the Wizards, which is just about the lamest, most minor-league sounding possible name. I'm more pro-Bullet than pro-Redskin as a team name though.

The Washington area seems to have a thing for lame team names:  Nationals (major-league baseball), Potomacs (minor-league baseball), Capitals (hockey).

That said, I don't favor keeping the Redskins name just to avoid lameness.  Heck, Virginia wisely retired "Carry Me Back to Old Virginny" as state song, before settling on a replacement (there still isn't one, and with the long and futile search so far, there may never be one). 

[english si]

Given the city is in the District of Colombia, how about "Colombians" for a lame name.


with a hispanic person snorting some drugs as the logo. Or not.

[Pete from Boston]

Given the city is in the District of Colombia, how about "Colombians" for a lame name.


with a hispanic person snorting some drugs as the logo. Or not.

Sorry, District of Columbia. 

[vdeane]

So what's the argument for not changing this racist team name again?  What changes if Washington becomes, I dunno, the Sentinels (the team name in the movie "The Replacements")?  Is anyone going to stop watching football?  Stop going to games?
I'll tell you what will happen when they eventually change that name.  It'll be a big hubbub for a few days, then everyone will buy new shirts and move on.

The same reason Apple doesn't just rename itself to Orange: it's become their brand.

To be honest, I had never even heard of the term "redskin" until this debate flared up.  Am I just sheltered?

Given the city is in the District of Colombia, how about "Colombians" for a lame name.


with a hispanic person snorting some drugs as the logo. Or not.

I can just imagine the controversy from going from a derogatory name for Native Americans (depending on which natives you ask) to a guy who slaughtered millions and essentially started slavery as it's known to our textbooks.