July 4, 2020

Two Pro Sports Teams With Racist Nicknames Are Finally Feeling Enough Pressure To Considering Dumping Them

Weird. Post a seven-year-old gag from The Onion at night, watch it actually (sort of) happen the next day.

The Washington DC football team is considering ditching its racist nickname, something management vowed would never happen. Of course, money is a big reason for the change of heart. One person noted if the team kept the offensive name, they would likely "have a major exodus of all [their] sponsors".

On Friday, Cleveland's major league baseball team acknowledged it is open to changing its nickname, as well. The team issued a statement that was, to put it mildly, pure bullshit:
We are committed to making a positive impact in our community and embrace our responsibility to advance social justice and equality. ... The recent unrest in our community and our country has only underscored the need for us to keep improving as an organization on issues of social justice.
If that was even remotely accurate, Chief Wahoo would be a hazy memory for everyone by now. Two years ago, the Commissioner said the racist caricature was "no longer appropriate for on-field use", but the team still makes money selling shirts and other items with the logo. ... Hey, Cleveland, it's not a crime to "improve" a little quicker, you know?

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2 comments:

Paul Hickman said...

Presumably Atlanta will be next to "review" ?

I wonder how many teams/clubs there are at lower levels - it could be hundreds in all sorts of sports ???

FenFan said...

It's crazy that only NOW are these teams finally giving "serious" consideration to changing the names and/or mascots... or maybe it's not when, as you point out, they are in danger of losing sponsorships.

A "few" protesters? Not a concern.

Loss of revenue? Let's form a committee!!!