There has been a long-standing argument over the political correctness of several sports teams’ names–none more-so than the Washington Redskins. The team was named by then-owner George Preston Marshall in recognition of head coach Lone Star Dietz in 1933. Dietz was supposedly part Sioux, but the historical correctness of that is not fully known. Marshall, on the other hand, greatly opposed the integration of the NFL and was a known racist, so that doesn’t help the Redskins’ case very much.
The Kansas City Star has not used the “Redskins” nickname for a long time, and now, the Washington City Paper has decided to dub the team the “Pigskins” instead of calling them their official nickname. From the Washington City Paper:
Over the last week, 1,125 of you voted on which of five names we should go with, and Pigskins—a.k.a. Hogs, in a tribute to the team’s great offensive line of the first Joe Gibbs era—stiff-armed the competition like John Riggins did to Don McNeal in Super Bowl XVII. The name won 50 percent of the vote. Washington Monuments came in a distant second, with 16 percent; Washington Bammas got 13 percent, Washington Half-Smokes, 11 percent, and Washington Washingtons 10 percent. There were a few late entries that we liked, such as the Washington RG3skins—inspired by the quarterback’s touchdown run last Sunday—and the Washington Americans.
Whether the NFL is going to ever change the name of the D.C.’s team has yet to be decided, but, if it does, the people have spoken and they want the “Pigskins.”
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