Recent Washington Redskins news stories have involved the most surreal fights between team owner Dan Snyder and large portions of the United States. After all, it was just a couple of years ago that the team lost their trademark, prompting four boys from Colorado to use crowdfunding to start a company that told people to go fuck themselves. There has been no shortage of people calling for Dan Snyder to change the name of his gridiron football franchise. Even members of Congress have made the attempt.
After all, the name is ridiculously offensive.
But the newest twist in the overwhelmingly frustrating saga of Washington Redskins news stories comes from across the pond. With the team scheduled to play a game in London during the upcoming 2016-17 season, members of Parliament have voiced their opposition to the team even setting foot on their soil. From Think Progress:
“‘We were shocked to learn the derivation of the term ‘R*dskin,’ pertaining as it does to the historic abuse of Native Americans,’ Ruth Smeeth and Ian Austin wrote in a letter to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, a copy of which was obtained by ESPN. ‘The exportation of this racial slur to the UK this autumn, when the Washington team is due to play, directly contravenes the values that many in Britain have worked so hard to instill.’
The two members of the British Labor Party want the league to change the team’s name or, ‘at the minimum, send a different team to our country to represent the sport, one that does not promote a racial slur.'”
As per the NFL’s 2016-17 league schedule, Washington is scheduled to play the Cincinnati Bengals in London in October as part of the NFL’s International Series. There have been 17 games played in London since 2007 and since 2014, the pace has been three games per season, leading to speculation of a possible NFL franchise in London.
The NFL has acknowledged they received the letter. From ESPN:
“‘A team’s name is a club decision,’ Brian McCarthy, the NFL’s vice president of communications, replied in an email. ‘We recognize there are strong views on both sides of this.'”
For an image-conscious enterprise like the NFL, the persistence of Washington’s team name is aggravating. Two years ago, Goodell was standing alongside Snyder and his decision to retain the moniker, but it seems that as more time has elapsed, the league has somewhat distanced itself from Snyder’s virulent stand. Albeit, without actually coming out against him.
Brian McCarthy stated that “a team’s name is a club decision,” insinuating that no institution has the authority to force a name change on a team save for the team’s ownership. The NFL, in their infinite wisdom, hasn’t even attempted to help Dan Snyder see the folly of his position, so far as I (or anyone) can tell. So, what if another NFL owner decided to name their team something bigoted? What if, say, an NFL team pops up in Birmingham, Ala. and decides to call themselves the “Niggers?”
Will the league step in then?
Featured image by Katidid213, available under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported license.
