The Washington helmet emblazoned with the controversial Redskins logo. Source: AP
WITH the NFL season officially underway, distractions off the field have already begun with Washington's controversial nickname - the Redskins - causing a stir.
The team's moniker and logo have long been accused of being racist, for obvious reasons, but no previous attempts have succeeded in getting them changed.
However the issue has resurfaced this week, with respected American football writer Peter King announcing that he will no longer use the word in his stories.
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King writes for Sports Illustrated's spinoff site MMQB – Monday Morning Quarterback – and has decided that he can avoid the issue entirely by simply omitting 'Redskins' from his writing.
"I can do my job without using it, and I will," wrote King in his MMQB column. "My 2,400-word story on Washington offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan and his unique approach to the read-option Thursday proved you can write about the team (insightfully, I hope) and not make a big deal about not using the nickname."
Washington's owner Dan Snyder is famously bullish about keeping the name, insisting that it is now part of the team's history and that it is honorific of the Native American fighting spirit.
Earlier this year Snyder was quoted by USA Today as saying: "We'll never change the name. It's that simple. NEVER – you can use caps."
The standoff is reminiscent of the 'N****r' Brown dispute, with the rugby league legend of the same name being honoured with a stand at Toowoomba Sports Ground, where he played his club football.
After much campaigning against the use of 'N****r' in the stand's name, it was agreed ES Brown's nickname would no longer be used at the ground when the stand was demolished in 2008.
No such resolution is on the horizon in Washington, and despite King's position, and the multiple protests and petitions the team have faced in recent years, opinion polls tend to support owner Snyder – one conducted in 2004 by the University of Pennsylvania found 91% of American Indians found the name acceptable.
But for King it doesn't matter whether only some people are offended, as he feels he can easily appease those who are offended with a small edit.
"Obviously, the team feels it isn't a slur, and there are several prominent Native American leaders who agree," wrote King.
"(But) some people, and some Native American organizations – such as the highly respected American Indian Movement – think the nickname is a slur."
One of King's fellow writers at MMQB, Robert Klemko, championed his colleague's stance and added that the whole website is joining the cause.
"I know that our site, we've talked about it, and we're not going to use Redskins in our writing," Klemko said on CBS Sports Radio.
"We're going to say 'Washington football team', and it's not something we're going to publicize or write about. We're just not going to do it."
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