Redskins Need A Name Change, Says D.C. Councilman
Is it time for the Washington Redskins to change their name? A D.C. councilman believes that the outdated and racist name should be changed to the Redtails.
Council member David Grosso said that the name “Redskins” was “derogatory” and “racist.”
Grosso is now circulating a proposal in an attempt to get the Redskins to change their name.
Grosso’s proposal reads: “District residents and their elected representatives should not tolerate commercial or other use of derogatory terminology relating to any people’s racial identity, or which dishonors any person’s race, or which dishonors the name Washington. Washington’s name has been dishonored by association with the word ‘Redskins.’ Because it is well known in America and in nations afar that American Indians have experienced utmost suffering and disrespect over the years.”
This isn’t the first time that someone has tried to have the Redskins change its names. When the debate was brought up last year, GM Bruce Allen said that he was proud of the team’s history and that he didn’t find anything offensive about the name.
Allen doesn’t want to ruin the history of the Redskins football team by changing its name, but Grosso may have the perfect solution. The councilman suggests that the team starts calling itself the Redtails. That way the team can keep its feather, its fight song, and its colors. The name will also attempt to smooth relations with anyone who felt discriminated against since “redtails” was the nickname for the the Tuskegee Airmen, the aviation unit that broke the color barrier in World War II.
Grosso also has Washington D.C.’s mayor on his side. Do you think the Washington Redskins need a name change?
