The NFL has a chance to get it right, but probably won’t

The NFL has a chance to get it right, but probably wont

Zach Hannigan, Staff Writer

Chiefs, Braves, Warriors and Redskins. All names that are used when representing our favorite sports teams.

The last, is one name that has come into controversy lately. The Washington Redskins of the National Football League have a name that many find offensive.

You’ve probably heard every argument for and against the name, so I won’t bore you with those.

But what I will say is: that is not for us to decide.

Team owners have recently come out and said the name honors “where we came from, who we are,” according to CNN.

That sounds nice and all, but what do they mean by “we?”

Would that “we” be the rich white guy, Daniel Snyder, who owns the team? Or does it apply to every American?

Either way, both those parties cannot claim that the Redskins name is who they are, or where they came from.

The argument about the name should fall on the shoulders of those that it “honors.”

In the most recent poll that asked Native Americans about the name, 90 percent of respondents said they did not consider the name offensive, according to CBS local news in Washington D.C.

Another poll conducted by the University of Pennsylvania in 2004 which polled 768 Native Americans from the lower 48, showed the same numbers. An astonishing 90 percent of Natives said the name was acceptable.

So there you have it, if they aren’t offended, they name should be able to stay.

The problem is, you have a bunch of white guys, myself included, telling Natives how they should think and feel about a name that represents them.

This is where the NFL has a chance to get it right. Why not have NFL commissioner Roger Goodell order that a survey be taken? Ask Native Americans from every tribe possible how they feel about the name.

Money should not be the issue that stops them from conducting that survey, they are the highest-grossing sport in the United States.

However, this probably won’t happen because Snyder has said that he refuses to change the name, and well, he pays the bills. The NFL has also continued to show a laissez-faire approach towards the matter.

I for one, will continue to hold out hope that the NFL sees the light.

Do the right thing Mr. Goodell, and put this argument to bed once and for all.