Renaming Sports Teams

[Eternal optimist]

37 minutes ago, Mr Dee said:

Re: nicknames for teams.
Usually, one bases decisions like this, on feelings, even without conscious reasoning.
It’s intuitive. 
In this case it just happens to be Inuitive.
See?
You’re welcome

That is such a bad pun... you're making a mockery of a serious issue here...

Edited July 13, 2020 by Eternal optimist

[Floyd]

1 hour ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

Because it was meant as a compliment. Not a racial slur. The name Eskimo was never meant to be a bad thing. My point is why should a minority get to change things? Or white folks who have never even  visited the North? Why should they have a say? They have no right to be dictating anything to the Inuit community. Just like Belair Direct or Pizza Hut. The last time I looked, white folks in a lot warmer climates ran those companies. I can say with confidence that no senior company executives from either  companies have spent ay time in Canada's far north. Yet here they are lecturing.  Another example of white entitlement thinking they know better than the Inuit community? How many offices does Belair Direct have in Nunavut or Inuvik? Or Boston Pizza  restaurants? Let the Inuit community figure it out for themselves & then go from there.

Again, I'm not against the Eskimos renaming their team. I just want to see proof that an overwhelming amount of Inuit find the name offensive, first. 

Natan Obed is not 'some white minority'...  This is an issue that he brought to the spotlight and I doubt it goes away.  Very tone deaf on the part of CFL.

He outlined his argument a long time ago - https://nunatsiaq.com/stories/article/65674natan_obed_why_the_name_edmonton_eskimos_harms_inuit/

[Noeller]

We don't bat an eye at Indians, Redskins, Braves and Eskimos..... But if you a team The Whities, Pale-Faces, etc.... You'd bet there'd be questions. It's insane to name sports teams after an ethnicity. 

[SpeedFlex27]

49 minutes ago, Mr Dee said:

Re: nicknames for teams.
Usually, one bases decisions like this, on feelings, even without conscious reasoning.
It’s intuitive. 
In this case it just happens to be Inuitive.
See?
You’re welcome

https://the-jhutch-rpc.tumblr.com/post/24497729052/robert-downey-jr-gif-hunt

Edited July 13, 2020 by SpeedFlex27

[Floyd]

14 minutes ago, Noeller said:

We don't bat an eye at Indians, Redskins, Braves and Eskimos..... But if you a team The Whities, Pale-Faces, etc.... You'd bet there'd be questions. It's insane to name sports teams after an ethnicity. 

Aside from the logo, I don't see how Braves is a racist name - is it not akin to Cowboys, Vikings and Patriots?

[SpeedFlex27]

20 minutes ago, Floyd said:

Natan Obed is not 'some white minority'...  This is an issue that he brought to the spotlight and I doubt it goes away.  Very tone deaf on the part of CFL.

He outlined his argument a long time ago - https://nunatsiaq.com/stories/article/65674natan_obed_why_the_name_edmonton_eskimos_harms_inuit/

He's one guy. Show me where the majority of the community wants change. Bel Air Direct are run by white guys grying to look good for business.  Naran Obed stated in that link that, "Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami has demanded that the Edmonton Canadian Football League team stop using the moniker Eskimos as part of an ongoing fight against colonization in the name of reconciliation. This stance has been supported by many Inuit, 'although I fully understand and appreciate that not all Inuit view the term as offensive'." And there you have it.  No consensus. Just one man's opinion. 

Edited July 13, 2020 by SpeedFlex27

[Floyd]

4 minutes ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

He's one guy. Show me where the majority of the community wants change. Bel Air Direct are run by white guys. 

Bel Air is not leading this campaign - Natan Obed is...  the leader of ITK

At the very LEAST, changing the name is a goodwill gesture towards the right of Inuit people to 'not be mascots'...

I suggest a compromise and we go with Edmonton Newfies - in honour of Fort MacMurray

[Rich]

25 minutes ago, Noeller said:

We don't bat an eye at Indians, Redskins, Braves and Eskimos..... But if you a team The Whities, Pale-Faces, etc.... You'd bet there'd be questions. It's insane to name sports teams after an ethnicity. 

Have seen some mentions out there that this should be changed as well, but curious on people's thoughts on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

[SpeedFlex27]

18 minutes ago, Floyd said:

Aside from the logo, I don't see how Braves is a racist name - is it not akin to Cowboys, Vikings and Patriots?

 

1 minute ago, Rich said:

Have seen some mentions out there that this should be changed as well, but curious on people's thoughts on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

I have no problem with that. A little Irish Leprechaun putting up his dukes wanting to go around or two. Are using Leprechauns offensive now to people? 

[SpeedFlex27]

13 minutes ago, Floyd said:

Bel Air is not leading this campaign - Natan Obed is...  the leader of ITK

At the very LEAST, changing the name is a goodwill gesture towards the right of Inuit people to 'not be mascots'...

I suggest a compromise and we go with Edmonton Newfies - in honour of Fort MacMurray

Again, WHY is it a goodwill gesture when the community can't agree if its offensive? And yes, Belair direct fired the first shot saying they're pulling their advertising from the Eskimos if they don't change their name. Which was both a threat & an act of corporate bullying. Just what has Belair Direct done for any First Nation in Quebec where their HO is? 

Edited July 13, 2020 by SpeedFlex27

[Rich]

I'd also point out that changing racist team names is not anything new, this list highlights name changes as far back as 1935..  

https://www.businessinsider.com/offensive-sports-team-names-and-how-they-came-about-2020-2

As language and norms change and evolve, there is no reason to keep racist sports names because of history.   Imagine if the names on this list were never changed.   The same will be said of the names we are only starting to change now.

[SpeedFlex27]

Let me tell you a story about insurance companies like Bel Air Direct & others from first hand experience as a claims adjuster. I was employed by an Independent Adjusting company in Thompson  back in the late 80's & early 90's. What an Independent Adjuster does is investigate claims on behalf of companies that have no offices or company adjusters in the area. The nearest office may be Calgary, Winnipeg or Saskatoon. They call & assign a claim to me to investigate a loss be it commercial, property or auto on their behalf. I get paid a certain rate per hour per claim plus all expenses if I have to travel by my own personal vehicle, rental or by air.  After the claim is completed I bill the company for my services & I get paid. 

I was assigned a claim by a well known insurance company.  A house fire on a reserve. Total loss. It was one of the band councillor's home.  It was about an hour's drive from Thompson. I got out to the site of the fire on the reserve, took pictures & statements. Ordered an RCMP police report & arranged for contractors to submit bids to rebuild the house. I sent a report to the insurance company with an update.

I got a call back from the company adjuster on the file who gave the okay to start construction. He said he noticed in my report that the house was on a Indian reserve. He wanted to know if that was true? I said, yes. He got upset & exclaimed, "What the hell are we insuring houses on an Indian reserve for?? Pay the claim but I'm sending a note to underwriting to cancel the insurance as he's a bad risk."  

Usually with something like a fire as it could be suspicious, the insurance company wants to know my impression of the client in my report. How they act. How they cooperate. Does it look like they're telling the truth? Are there any flags or warning signs like suspicious behaviour?  I had no concerns about the homeowner & noted that in my report. He was a First Nations band councillor living on a reserve which made him a bad risk in the company's eyes. They felt he was uninsurable because he lived on a reserve. I can honestly tell you that dealing with the homeowner was never a problem. Very cooperative & a good guy so I was more than a little surprised at the  company's reaction

A couple of weeks later I got a call from one of the insurance agents in town to ask why his client's homeowners coverage was cancelled as he thought I might have had something to do with it. Which I didn't. The insurance company notified the agent & his client in writing that the policy was cancelled. I told him what the company adjuster said to me & he became even more upset. "They can't do that!!" he yelled. 

He said he was going to call the company to hopefully get the policy reinstated. He said if they don't then he'd recommend to all his clients in Thompson & area to cancel their coverage with that company when their renewal came up & he'd get them hooked up with another insurance carrier.  The impression I got when I spoke to the company adjuster was that it was no big deal if they lose a few clients in Thompson. Especially those who lived on reserves that they weren't aware of. 

That's about as racist as it gets. So I have no particular love or respect for an insurance company like Bel Air Direct for what they did regarding the Eskimo name as there is always an ulterior motive. They want to look socially responsible so more people will insure their property, belongings & vehicles with them. Corporate decisions like these are always  driven by money & profits. Not by social justice. 

Edited July 13, 2020 by SpeedFlex27

[Eternal optimist]

10 hours ago, Rich said:

I'd also point out that changing racist team names is not anything new, this list highlights name changes as far back as 1935..  

https://www.businessinsider.com/offensive-sports-team-names-and-how-they-came-about-2020-2

As language and norms change and evolve, there is no reason to keep racist sports names because of history.   Imagine if the names on this list were never changed.   The same will be said of the names we are only starting to change now.

Amazing how many of those names were changed recently.... also, how on earth did somebody think naming a team after Jack the Ripper was a good idea?

[TBURGESS]

17 hours ago, Floyd said:

.. the Eskimos brand now prevents the Feds from giving the CFL any sort of bailout...  what point are we trying to prove?

This simply has no merit. The Eskimos name doesn't prevent the Feds from giving the CFL a bailout.

12 hours ago, Noeller said:

We don't bat an eye at Indians, Redskins, Braves and Eskimos..... But if you a team The Whities, Pale-Faces, etc.... You'd bet there'd be questions. It's insane to name sports teams after an ethnicity. 

Personally, I'd have no problems with Whities or Palefaces. It's insane in 2020 to name teams after ethnicity, it wasn't when the Eskimos, Redskins, Braves, Indians, etc were named. If the majority of Canadian's want the names to be changed, then the names should be changed.

The Fighting Irish logo shows the stereotypical racist image of a drunk Irishman wanting to fight. The Eskimos is a double E. If anything, the Fighting Irish is more racist. It would be like the Eskimo logo being a drunk Eskimo leaning against a wall. That being said, I don't have any problems with the Fighting Irish either.

[Floyd]

7 minutes ago, TBURGESS said:

This simply has no merit. The Eskimos name doesn't prevent the Feds from giving the CFL a bailout.

Because it doesn't fit with your argument...?  Edmonton is all over the news today - linked with the Redskins name change...  you're delusional if you think govt wants to be anywhere near the CFL right now

[blue_gold_84]

4 minutes ago, Floyd said:

Because it doesn't fit with your argument...?  Edmonton is all over the news today - linked with the Redskins name change...  you're delusional if you think govt wants to be anywhere near the CFL right now

This seems like a bit of a reach. Where have you read or seen anything that makes you jump to that conclusion? Has anyone within the federal gov't hinted at such a stance? I haven't seen it.

The renaming a CFL team and the CFL as a league itself requesting federal assistance are wholly separate issues. I don't think a single team renaming itself will determine whether or not the CFL gets financial aid from the feds.

[TBURGESS]

28 minutes ago, Floyd said:

Because it doesn't fit with your argument...?  Edmonton is all over the news today - linked with the Redskins name change...  you're delusional if you think govt wants to be anywhere near the CFL right now

Not because it doesn't fit with my argument. Because no one in the Government has mentioned the Eskimos name at all.

FTR: There are degrees. Redskin is like the N word or Paleface would be. Eskimo is like Indian or Black or White.

[TrueBlue4ever]

You know, it would be nice if just once everyone who gets so offended by a team nickname that they fill pages with outrage on social media devoted the same vitriol and energy to speaking out (or helping fix the problem) against the rates of poverty, lack of clean drinking water, and no road access to many northern reserves. 

[Floyd]

1 hour ago, TrueBlue4ever said:

You know, it would be nice if just once everyone who gets so offended by a team nickname that they fill pages with outrage on social media devoted the same vitriol and energy to speaking out (or helping fix the problem) against the rates of poverty, lack of clean drinking water, and no road access to many northern reserves. 

Yeah I'm pretty sure Natan Obed is working on that too...

 

[Floyd]

1 hour ago, blue_gold_84 said:

This seems like a bit of a reach. Where have you read or seen anything that makes you jump to that conclusion? Has anyone within the federal gov't hinted at such a stance? I haven't seen it.

The renaming a CFL team and the CFL as a league itself requesting federal assistance are wholly separate issues. I don't think a single team renaming itself will determine whether or not the CFL gets financial aid from the feds.

All I get is CBC out here... and every news cycle they mention 'the Edmonton football club'

[Floyd]

1 hour ago, TBURGESS said:

Not because it doesn't fit with my argument. Because no one in the Government has mentioned the Eskimos name at all.

FTR: There are degrees. Redskin is like the N word or Paleface would be. Eskimo is like Indian or Black or White.

You do understand that Indian is deemed a racist term as well right - for like well over a decade?  First Nations or Indigenous is the term. 

Eskimo and Indian are not like 'black or white'...  the more you post the more Whitebread you sound.

[Tracker]

The Washington NFL team has annouced that they will be releasing the new name for their team later today. Washington Warriors, maybe?

[M.Silverback]

Some realtor in the US trademarked a bunch of potential names that Washington may have been considering.

https://www.bardown.com/a-virginia-realtor-filed-trademarks-for-a-bunch-of-new-washington-football-names-1.1494956

I hate when people do that with websites or trademarks. Just looking to hold a company or team hostage for a cash grab. Hope Washington chooses a name this guy did not trademark and he gets nothing. 

 

 

[Mr Dee]

21 minutes ago, Tracker said:

The Washington NFL team has annouced that they will be releasing the new name for their team later today. Washington Warriors, maybe?

How grand of them. They don’t have any regard for the actual meaning behind this gesture. They’re not really doing it for the benefit of mankind, but rather, for the benefit of their pocketbook. 
They had ample opportunity over the years to change this ‘nickname’ but chose not to, but are only doing it now because sponsors are backing off. (and they’re backing off for the same reason)

[AKAChip]

17 hours ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

Because it was meant as a compliment. Not a racial slur. The name Eskimo was never meant to be a bad thing. My point is why should a minority get to change things? Or white folks who have never even  visited the North? Why should they have a say? They have no right to be dictating anything to the Inuit community. Just like Belair Direct or Pizza Hut. The last time I looked, white folks in a lot warmer climates ran those companies. I can say with confidence that no senior company executives from either  companies have spent ay time in Canada's far north. Yet here they are lecturing.  Another example of white entitlement thinking they know better than the Inuit community? How many offices does Belair Direct have in Nunavut or Inuvik? Or Boston Pizza  restaurants? Let the Inuit community figure it out for themselves & then go from there.

Again, I'm not against the Eskimos renaming their team. I just want to see proof that an overwhelming amount of Inuit find the name offensive, first. 

Perhaps the onus should be on the team to prove that the overwhelming majority do NOT find it offensive rather than the other way around. 

Edited July 13, 2020 by AKAChip