For years now, the Redskins organization has found itself defending the name of the team. Every once in a while, the team is taken to court over the name, by people saying that the team should change its name, because it is a derogatory term towards Native Americans. And for years, the courts have ruled on the side of the team, because of copyright laws and trademark cases. This year is no different, and even some politicians have taken part in the discussion.
I personally have no issues with the name, but I am not Native American, so it doesn't matter what I think. My wife is 1/8th Native American, and she has no problems with the team name. I also know a number of Native Americans who do not have any problems with the name. Does that mean the majority of people are ok with it? Of course not, but to say that Native Americans in general find it offensive is wrong as well.
Well, it seems that for the time being the team name isn't going to change. For one of the few times, the fans of the Redskins will find themselves liking Dan Snyder, which is a major change from years before. According to USA Today, the owner of the Washington Redskins has said "We will never change the name of the team." "As a lifelong Redskins fan, and I think that the Redskins fans understand the great tradition and what it's all about and what it means, so we feel pretty fortunate to be just working on next season." When asked about possibly changing his mind if the courts were to decide against him in a federal trademark lawsuit that is going on, "We'll never change the name," he said. "It's that simple. NEVER -- you can use caps."
I for one am glad to see that he is standing firm on this topic. Granted, his reasons are probably not just because of tradition, since he will lose a lot of money if the team was forced to change its name. Regardless, when Dan Snyder puts his mind to wanting something, history has shown that he gets it, and in this case, that would be just fine for the Washington Redskins fans.
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