The Washington Redskins and the Lehighton Indians

I’m listening to a Teaching Company course on the English language.  In a recent lecture I learned that groups can sometimes “reclaim” a word that has been used as a pejorative term.  For example, some universities offer “queer studies.”  I personally feel uncomfortable using that term, which has been considered a slur for most of my life, but if gay people (another pejorative term that has now been fully reclaimed) want to use it, I certainly can’t object.

Which brings us to the “Redskins.”  The Washington Post recently took a poll and found that nine out of ten American Indians said they took no offense at the word “Redskin.”  The poll questioned 504 people.  There are over 5 million American Indians.  I wonder how many white people would call an American Indian a “Redskin” to his or her face unless they were trying to provoke an incident.

The American Psychological Association some years ago said Native American Indian team mascots and symbols appear “to have a negative impact on the self-esteem of American Indian children.”

If reservation teams want to use the term Redskins or Braves, that is their right.  It is hardly the right for a spoiled rich owner of an NFL team to decide that it is ok.

Which brings us to Lehighton.  Lehighton High School teams, known as the Indians, sport a logo with a headdress worn by Plains Indians.  The Lenni Lanape Indians who remained after the introduction of European diseases and the extermination campaigns were first forced to move to Ohio and then to Oklahoma.  Descendents in the area are few, but why would you name a team “Indians” in any case?  Why not “the Dutchies,” since quite a few Pennsylvania Dutch descendants still live the Lehighton School District.  

Trump has been making a big deal out of not being “politically correct.”  Another word for being “politically incorrect” is asshole.  Why not call people what they want to be called?  Why go out of the way to be an insulting boor?  Why not behave with some manners?  Why do we still have a team called “Redskins.”  And a high school team called “Indians”?