Here’s my view on this “Redskins” controversy.
First, I’m torn because I absolutely agree
that the term “redskin” is pejorative.
To use the analogy, I wouldn’t want to support a professional team named
the “Washington Sambos.” However,
there’s a reality to this story that’s not being talked about much.
First, I think there is a degree of
disingenuousness and hypocrisy by Native Americans, and by other American
“minorities,” particularly by African Americans. I have no doubt that over time—as soon as the
first “pale face” spoke the words “red skin”—that it became a slur against
Native Americans. I wonder…when Native
Americans first learned English, was the term “white man” used innocuously, or
did it soon have a “racial” bite? I’ll
bet that in those early days of American colonialism and settling the “wild,
wild west,” calling Native American Indians “redskins” didn’t exactly have the
same context (at first) as when American culture referred to Asians as “yellow,”
or Hispanics as “brown,” or how in the antebellum South, “blacks” was used
equally negative to describe Americans of African descent. But it is a fact that many Native American
Indian tribes used face paint for many purposes—religious, celebrations, and in
war. Many cultures around the world use
body paint for similar reasons, but early American settlers in the west, who
first encountered hostile Indian tribes, would naturally (in ignorance or fear)
refer to their painted attackers as “red-skinned.” Is that were the word comes from? Did that quickly become a slur in the lexicon
of the white man? Of course. I’m not trying to argue that Native Americans
brought this on themselves, I’m just saying the term has a basis in historical
fact. And while it definitely falls
squarely in the same class as “nigger,” “kike,” “chink,” “slope,” “spick,”
“honky,” “cracker,” or any other racial slur, I see “redskin” a little
differently.
Second, I bristle at my African American
friends who join the argument against the Washington Redskins logo, while
justifying the proliferation of the word “nigga” as a term of endearment. And don’t feed me this bullshit that “nigga”
is DIFFERENT from “nigger.” Some Blacks wholly
embrace the term “nigga,” and the entertainment industry has made its use
extremely profitable for both hip hop artists, and their white producers, agents,
and sponsors. I won’t even go into how
much Hollywood enriches itself by the financial exploitation of all of these
terms SOLELY for their pejorative connotation!
(Quick quiz:
Do you know what an “apple” is?
It’s a Native American slur used against other Native Americans to describe
a person who’s “red” on the outside, but “white” on the inside. Hmmmm…)
When the NCAA declared that all member
schools had to change their mascots and team names that evoked these racially
divisive terms (“Chiefs,” “Redmen,” “Braves,” “Warriors,” “Illini,” etc.), they
gave a pass to Notre Dame (the “Irish”) and especially to the Florida State
“Seminoles,” who still proudly (and legally) display their painted-face Indian
head logo. The Seminole Nation is split
on this topic—Oklahoma Seminoles hate it, while Florida Seminoles profit from
it! Yes, the word “redskin” is bad, but
what’s to be said of 30,000 Atlanta Braves “fans” when they break out into that
incessant tomahawk chop thing—are they as racist as Dan Schneider and his 90K singing
fans when the team scores a touchdown?
When the Redskins moved from Boston (the “Boston Braves”),
the wife of the owner (George Preston Marshall) wrote the lyrics to its now
iconic fight song:
Hail to
the Redskins!
Hail
Victory!
Braves on the Warpath!
Fight for old D.C.!
Run or pass and score -- we want a lot more!
Beat 'em, Swamp 'em,
Touchdown! -- Let the points soar!
Fight on, fight on 'Til you have won
Sons of Wash-ing-ton. Rah!, Rah!, Rah!
Hail to
the Redskins!
Hail Victory!
Braves on the Warpath!
Fight for old D.C.!
But the original lyrics
were (in CAPS):
Hail to
the Redskins!
Hail
Victory!
Braves
on the Warpath!
Fight
for old DIXIE!
Run or
pass and score -- we want a lot more!
SCALP
'EM, SWAMP 'EM -- WE WILL TAKE 'EM BIG SCORE
READ
'EM, WEEP 'EM, TOUCHDOWN - WE WANT HEAP MORE
Fight
on, Fight on -- 'Till you have won
Sons of
Wash-ing-ton. Rah!, Rah!, Rah!
Hail to
the Redskins!
Hail Victory!
Braves on the Warpath!
Fight for old DIXIE!
Did she write those words to openly demean
Indians? Did she use the
term “redskin” in the same (racist) context as if the team were named the “Washington
Sambos?”
Hail to
the Sambos!
Hail
Victory!
Coons
on the Warpath!
Fight
for old Dixie!
Run or
pass and score -- we want a lot more!
Shuffle
on a-long then mop the den floor.
Slave
on, Slave on ‘till you are done
Shiftless,
la-zy bums! Rah!, Rah!, Rah!
What sense does that make? None, and I argue that while the term “redskin”
is certainly offensive (then and now), to argue that the Washington Redskins
football club IS racist and the organization’s intent is to perpetuate racism,
is just a plainly stupid argument. (I
mean, when was the last time, outside of Hollywood, that you heard anyone, ever,
seriously refer to a Native American as a “redskin” in that context? In
1938, it was just a mascot and had no more cultural meaning to the team
than a “pirate” meant to Oakland or Pittsburgh.
But today, 2013, it’s a business—BIG business (take a look at how much
money the NCAA makes on the sale of school logos). The Redskin logo means billions in revenue to
Dan Schneider, NBC, FedEx, and Landover, MD, just as that blood-thirsty,
murderous pirate means jobs (and profits) to Oakland and Pittsburg. Sure, Dan Schneider could have said he’d
never change the name without capitalizing the word “never,” but by saying it
that way, he’s putting all of us on notice that he’s not going to be pushed
around, and from a business perspective I don’t blame him for the stance he’s
taken. (I think you’re a crappy owner,
Danny, but I’m on your side on this issue!)
If the Redskins change their name, will I continue to support the team—hail
to the...(uh, hell to the yeah)! But I
disagree with this particular “PC” snit. The argument is out of context and is being
personalized.
And I’ll say this--I’ll bet you cash money that while
they’re pissed off over this “redskin” thing, there are probably more than a few Native American Indians
who bop their heads and sing along (openly) to Kanye’s hook: “Now I ain't sayin' she a
gold digger, but she ain't messin' with no broke niggas!”
I’m just
sayin’. Okay: Flame on!
I accepted the task of
keeping the weekly score of our NFL Pick 'Em Challenge, and I committed to
providing a weekly post with each week's score, but because we started in the
middle of government fiscal year-end throes, I couldn’t find the time to write
my usual pithy words on the previous week's games. Well, since my so-called
"representatives" in Congress believe in their hearts that their argument
to see who has the biggest dick is what the American people asked for, and
since it's also in my best interests to put me out of work to salve our budget
woes (while they keep their paychecks), it seems that I have time to write
something--at least for this week. I
hope this doesn't become a habit! :-(
