tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5918263243703155602.post8034489876717031525..comments2023-06-05T05:35:53.290-04:00Comments on Harvey's Global Politics - HGP: Redskins Name change: Dan Synder it's long overduehealthysoulshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04578620378680191125noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5918263243703155602.post-17515494269241069812013-10-22T12:39:40.179-04:002013-10-22T12:39:40.179-04:00Well, that might be right. But there are another h...Well, that might be right. But there are another half dozen competing stories as to the name. <br /><br />With an Irish father and a lot of Irish family, including a cousin and his family directly from Ireland, I know that it's not embraced by all Irish people. The leprechaun with his little fists waving around stands as a negative stereotype to many, not a positive one. All it's missing is the beer mug.<br /><br />Though that's a perfect example of how individuals take things and how individuals not involved still offer their take on who should or shouldn't be offended or what should be okay. So to whom does society cater? The folks who embrace it or don't mind, or the folks who are offended by it? The folks who want to police terms they find offensive, or the folks who are targeted? <br /><br />The same with the Redskins. More than anything, Natives should the driving force of the change if they find it offensive, not the Bob Costas' of the nation. <br /><br />I personally lean toward it being unnecessary. I'm not sure about offensive; I'm still pretty much on the fence. <br /><br /> Joshhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03970377995219031351noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5918263243703155602.post-78413139162895580262013-10-21T14:49:00.535-04:002013-10-21T14:49:00.535-04:00@Josh...The "fighting Irish" named thems...@Josh...The "fighting Irish" named themselves the fighting Irish...it was not as if a WASP selected the name. It is a name embraced by the Irish:<br /><br />"...tale has the nickname originating at halftime of the Notre Dame-Michigan game in 1909. With his team trailing, one Notre Dame player yelled to his teammates - who happened to have names like Dolan, Kelly, Glynn, Duffy and Ryan - "What's the matter with you guys? You're all Irish and you're not fighting worth a lick."<br /><br />Notre Dame came back to win the game and press, after overhearing the remark, reported the game as a victory for the "Fighting Irish."healthysoulshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04578620378680191125noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5918263243703155602.post-59752952274533847162013-10-18T06:29:09.628-04:002013-10-18T06:29:09.628-04:00I can see this from both sides. And, on a quick si...I can see this from both sides. And, on a quick side note, I see that Wiki has been edited completely for "Redskin" to adopt the current PC standard which states, outright, that attributing any color to someone's skin is a slur (but, oddly enough, not for "black" or "white"); and I see "Redskins" as a descriptive for Beothuk traditions has fallen under the fold. <br /><br />The main reason I would say not to change it is that I don't really have a strong opinion on it one way or the other. And not having my own take on it, it's not right to sidle up to folks who are genuinely attempting to change it -- whether they're actually offended or not. <br /><br />My brief take on it in general would be simple: Only recently have we, as a society, began really cracking down on anything that even might be deemed offensive by someone. But we still only seem to care when it can be said word X or term Y is derogatory against a minority group. "Fighting Irish" is fine, although--and I would argue that this is objective--a leprechaun and angry, fist-waving Irish is every bit the stereotype a painted Indian (Native) labeled "red" is. <br /><br />I'm not offended by the former, so any offense I'd claim for the latter would be feigned. <br /><br />I agree with your historical perspective about the Redskins as a slow-to-change organization. But, on the flip side, there's also an opportunity to stand fast with that name and to change the connotation into something positive -- or at least not negative. I don't need to drop the words which have experienced that fate. They're obvious. <br /><br />So this is one I'm stumped on. I don't see the name as being that racially offensive. It's a bit uncomfortable, but I think we're attempting to give it too much credit as an outright slur. Joshhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03970377995219031351noreply@blogger.com