The Patriot Post® · Hail to the ... No Names?

Across the country over the last few decades, a number of college sports teams have changed their nicknames as part of the rush toward political correctness, with many casting aside Indian-based names in favor of new monikers deemed less offensive, like Eagles, Redhawks, Red Storm or Crimson Hawks.

Professional teams have also faced the same pressure, particularly the Atlanta Braves, Chicago Blackhawks, Cleveland Indians, and most recently and relentlessly the Washington Redskins. The stakes for a change from the NFL franchise were raised this week when Barack Obama couldn’t resist spouting off that he would “think about changing” the name if he owned the team. On the other hand, Redskins owner Daniel Snyder has consistently said he would never change the name.

Yet there is pressure from other avenues, along with local precedent for changing team monikers. Former FCC chairman Reed Hundt is trying to persuade broadcasters to stop using the “Redskins” nickname, and it was then-Washington Bullets owner Abe Pollin who grew “tired of the association” between his team’s nickname and the violence gripping the city when the NBA franchise became the Wizards in 1997 after a renaming contest.

But NFL fans who have remained steadfast and loyal to their Redskins for nearly 80 years are a harder group to crack, and, far from being offended, even Indian tribes are mainly indifferent to the name. It seems the group most offended are the professionally aggrieved and busybody sportswriters who have invested barrels of ink trying to change what most people find utterly banal and unimportant.

> Update: Redskins owner Daniel Snyder wrote a letter to season ticket holders explaining his position: “We owe it to our fans and coaches and players, past and present, to preserve [the team’s] heritage. … Washington Redskins is more than a name we have called our football team for over eight decades. It is a symbol of everything we stand for: strength, courage, pride, and respect – the same values we know guide Native Americans and which are embedded throughout their rich history as the original Americans.”