Washington Football Franchise team name discussion

[Jenksismyhero]

http://www.und.com/trads/nd-m-fb-name.html

 

 

 

So, based on that, if the Irish got together and found that it was offensive to them, I think they'd have a legitimate case. Instead, I think, given the Irish heritage of the school, they view it as a source of pride anymore. I'm not Irish nor an alum of ND nor anything related to ND nor a citizen of Indiana, so I have no horse in that race.

 

Well i'm Irish, or at least mostly Irish, and I find it offensive. I'm sure I can drum up about 5% of Irish people to agree with me. So it should be changed. Rabble, rabble, rabble.

[GoSox05]

Well i'm Irish, or at least mostly Irish, and I find it offensive. I'm sure I can drum up about 5% of Irish people to agree with me. So it should be changed. Rabble, rabble, rabble.

 

Do you use racial slurs face to face with people?

[witesoxfan]

Well i'm Irish, or at least mostly Irish, and I find it offensive. I'm sure I can drum up about 5% of Irish people to agree with me. So it should be changed. Rabble, rabble, rabble.

 

Then the first step would be to gather signatures from these other people and speak to university officials and laying out your points as to why you find the name Fighting Irish offensive and unacceptable. Maybe you can forward it on to a few other websites and display your outrage over the topic.

 

People that are outspoken and are intelligent in doing so tend to get listened to.

[southsider2k5]

Under what circumstances would you feel it remotely possible to strip a word with a racial history of its power enough that you'd feel willing to use it to a person's face?

Can you give me an example of where that has happened? Even looking through words tossed at Irish or Italian Americans through time, I don't think you'd call people those today.

 

Again, you make my point for me. Instead of addressing the problem, we ban the thought. We push cultures further apart. The issue behind the evil unspeakable word is never addressed, and isn't able to be addressed, because you can't have an honest discussion of something deemed "offensive" in this country.

[Jenksismyhero]

Do you use racial slurs face to face with people?

 

No, but I don't think referring to a nickname of a football team is equivalent to using a racial slur.

[GoSox05]

No, but I don't think referring to a nickname of a football team is equivalent to using a racial slur.

 

Calling a Native American a redskin is a racial slur. Just because a football team uses it as a nickname doesn't suddenly make it not so.

Edited August 20, 2014 by GoSox05

[Balta1701]

Again, you make my point for me. Instead of addressing the problem, we ban the thought. We push cultures further apart. The issue behind the evil unspeakable word is never addressed, and isn't able to be addressed, because you can't have an honest discussion of something deemed "offensive" in this country.

What thought do you want to communicate using the term r*dskin that you cannot communicate otherwise?

 

What pushes cultures further apart, stopping using a term, or the racist mother*****r who is using it? (George Carlin quote)

[bmags]

This all reminds me of when it came out that Rick Perry's ranch was called "n*head ranch". The townspeople assured us this is not racist, because that is just the colloquial term for a flower. It's just a flowers name, nobody associates it with anything derogatory.

[southsider2k5]

What thought do you want to communicate using the term r*dskin that you cannot communicate otherwise?

 

What pushes cultures further apart, stopping using a term, or the racist mother*****r who is using it? (George Carlin quote)

 

Putting artificial barriers between yourself and another race, perfectly acceptable as an answer. Who cares they all are confined to reservations and were slaughtered by the millions... just don't call a football team "redskins".

 

This is the same logic that goes into book banning. Someone is offended by the contents of a book, well we can't have that, let's ban it! We can't have an honest discussion of the history and problems behind the topic? Nah, that would make someone uncomfortable. Let's keep the ignorance fully in place.

[RockRaines]

Do you use racial slurs face to face with people?

Yes, all the time.

[Balta1701]

Putting artificial barriers between yourself and another race, perfectly acceptable as an answer. Who cares they all are confined to reservations and were slaughtered by the millions... just don't call a football team "redskins".

 

This is the same logic that goes into book banning. Someone is offended by the contents of a book, well we can't have that, let's ban it! We can't have an honest discussion of the history and problems behind the topic? Nah, that would make someone uncomfortable. Let's keep the ignorance fully in place.

You've made a very profound and strong case in favor of reparations.

[southsider2k5]

You've made a very profound and strong case in favor of reparations.

 

No, you have imagined that too.

 

Here have some dollars, now go away, doesn't help the situation either.

[bmags]

"Listen, I could give you a portion of the capital that we've accumulated from the hundred years since we massacred your ancestors and moved you to a piece of land of little value, but that won't help you! What will help you is letting us use a derogatory name we used toward your ancestors to celebrate your culture. You are welcome."

[Balta1701]

No, you have imagined that too.

 

Here have some dollars, now go away, doesn't help the situation either.

So basically you just want the problem to go away because it's annoying you to hear about it but you can't be troubled to have it effect you in any way and can't offer any suggestions for what could actually be done to make "R*dskin" usable in daily conversation.

[Jenksismyhero]

Calling a Native American a redskin is a racial slur. Just because a football team uses it as a nickname doesn't suddenly make it not so.

 

Right, but I'm not calling a Native American a redskin. I'm calling a football team a nickname in a discussion about football with a Native American. You can separate the two.

[Balta1701]

Right, but I'm not calling a Native American a redskin. I'm calling a football team a nickname in a discussion about football with a Native American. You can separate the two.

If there was a native american sitting next to you and you were asked about the football team in Washington DC you'd feel comfortable using that term and be surprised if he or she took offense?

[Jenksismyhero]

If there was a native american sitting next to you and you were asked about the football team in Washington DC you'd feel comfortable using that term and be surprised if he or she took offense?

 

I would feel comfortable yes. I probably would not be surprised if they took offense, because for the last 6 months i've been told what a terrible word it is and how native americans probably don't like it (by a bunch of white people, mind you).

[southsider2k5]

So basically you just want the problem to go away because it's annoying you to hear about it but you can't be troubled to have it effect you in any way and can't offer any suggestions for what could actually be done to make "R*dskin" usable in daily conversation.

 

I want the problem to be solved, not hidden away from public view with a few farcical shows of "caring" by banning a term.

[Jenksismyhero]

I'd still like someone to cite an example of when "redskin" was used as a derogatory word in the last, i dunno, 40 years. I could see this argument back when the team was naming itself (if 2014 society was implanted in the early 20th century). Same with movies like Peter Pan. But now? in 2014? No. Poll 100 people about the term "Washington Redskins" and how many do you honestly believe would think you're talking about a Native American or tribe? If they aren't thinking about this naming "controversy," the answer would be very few, if any.

Edited August 20, 2014 by Jenksismybitch

[Balta1701]

I want the problem to be solved, not hidden away from public view with a few farcical shows of "caring" by banning a term.

Tell me how this is to be done. Still waiting for the first suggestion of anything that would ever make this ok.

[StrangeSox]

Then the first step would be to gather signatures from these other people and speak to university officials and laying out your points as to why you find the name Fighting Irish offensive and unacceptable. Maybe you can forward it on to a few other websites and display your outrage over the topic.

 

People that are outspoken and are intelligent in doing so tend to get listened to.

On the other hand, these ND complaints are bad faith on their face and only ever advanced by people trying to defend Redskins, chief wahoo etc.

[StrangeSox]

I want the problem to be solved, not hidden away from public view with a few farcical shows of "caring" by banning a term.

using this logic, we should have a team called the Chicago N*****s because hey, otherwise we're hiding that s***ty, racist term away from the public view. And that's bad, for some reason.

 

edit: and also, for some reason, removing a racist team name means you can't address any other issues related to American Indians?

Edited August 20, 2014 by StrangeSox

[Jenksismyhero]

On the other hand, these ND complaints are bad faith on their face and only ever advanced by people trying to defend Redskins, chief wahoo etc.

 

Of course they are, because white people can never complain about anything. White males especially.

[StrangeSox]

Of course they are, because white people can never complain about anything. White males especially.

the only context it ever seems to be brought up in is when people are trying to make excuses for racist names/caricatures.

[StrangeSox]

I want the problem to be solved, not hidden away from public view with a few farcical shows of "caring" by banning a term.

you know, there's a very specific, narrow problem that can be solved by changing the name from something racist to something else. that problem is that an NFL team has a racial slur as its name. addressing that problem doesn't mean no other problems can be addressed, and the existence of other problems doesn't mean that problem shouldn't be addressed.