Column: Readers offer more names for 'Redskins'

Opinion | Sports

Thursday, November 19, 2009

"The Redskins beat Denver. The FedEx Field sign ban was overturned. All is right with the world.

I mean, as long as you ignore that name.

Despite the recent Landover Spring, that name still rankles some of us. With the team on a one-game winning streak it seems a good time to remind people that the name has nothing to do with Native Americans. I mean, it has something to do with them, because it's a term for Indians based on their skin color, a term the dictionary flags as offensive. The team name's derivation, however, is tied to the politics of its founding in Boston as the Braves, twin to a baseball team that played there under that name. People who now say it honors Indians are engaging in an ex post facto defense.

It might be more correct to say that we're attached to the name because it honors Washington's previous NFL squads. These are worth honoring, although using an offensive racial term to honor old football players seems a bit weird.

The Supreme Court decided not to involve itself in the Redskins' trademark dispute, but my readers continue to offer their name ideas.

"How about the Lost Italians, after Chris Columbus," wrote Gerald Fisher of Dearborn Heights, Mich. Gerald is a member of the Oneida Nation, so ponder his suggestion accordingly."

Get the Story:
John Kelly's Washington: Fans have plenty of names for the Redskins. Plenty. (The Washington Post 11/19)