The District of Columbia Council is trying to urge team owner Dan Snyder to abandon his NFL football team’s name because they consider it as racist and “morally unacceptable.” 

Have you ever wondered where the term “Redskin” came from in the first place? I always assumed it was the colour of native American’s skin. I guess that would make me a “pinkskin”. However, that semi-racist assumption on my part turns out not to be so. The redskin part that is. I am definitely pink. While surfing around on this subject I came across a whole bunch of stuff, like the following:

Proclamation issued in 1755

Given at the Council Chamber in Boston this third day of November 1755 in the twenty-ninth year of the Reign of our Sovereign Lord George the Second by the Grace of God of Great Britain, France, and Iceland, King Defender of the Faith.

By His Honour’s command
J. Willard, Secry.
God Save the King

Whereas the tribe of Penobscot Indians have repeatedly in a perfidious manner acted contrary to their solemn submission unto his Majesty long since made and frequently renewed.

I have therefore, at the desire of the House of Representatives … thought fit to issue this Proclamation and to declare the Penobscot Tribe of Indians to be enemies, rebels, and traitors to his Majesty. And I do hereby require his Majesty’s subjects of the Province to embrace all opportunities of pursuing, captivating, killing, and destroy all and every one of the aforesaid Indians.

And wereas the General Court of this Province have voted that a bounty…. be granted and allowed to be paid out of the Province Treasury…. The premiums of bounty following viz:

For every scalp of a male Indian brought in as evidence of their being killed as aforesaid, forty pounds.

For every scalp of such female Indian or male Indian under the age of twelve years that shall be killed and brought in as evidence of their being killed as aforesaid, twenty pounds.

It turns out the term “Redskin” wasn’t derived from some romantic warrior concept that is the American “Indian”. Another misnomer caused by a confused Italian sailing from Spain who landed on a Caribbean Island instead of India yet still dubbed the local people “Indians.”

No – the name came from the bounty on the heads of the native American people.

Indian hunters and trappers would bring in “Indian” scalps along with the other skins that they had managed to trap or shoot. You know, like beaver and bear and buffalo. These scalps brought varying prices as did the skins of the animals. The trappers would tell the trading post owner or whoever it was that they were dealing with, that he had 2 bearskins, a couple of beaver skins…and a few scalps.

Well, the term “scalp” offended, (ahem), the Christian women of the community and they asked that another term is found to describe these things. So, the trappers and hunters began using the term “redskin”.

The term came from the bloody mess that was a scalp… “red” for the blood and skin because it was the “skin” of an animal just like the others that they had trapped.

Now – all this information comes from sites on the web against the use of the so-called “Indian” mascots in sports. But listen, if it’s 1/100th right, I’d say that’s enough for me.

Offensive?

Ya think?

Political Correctness is an awful thing. Declaring that particular ideas, expressions and behaviour that are all legal, should now – in these so-called enlightened times – be either frowned upon or even forbidden by law, is a revolting concept.

But come on.

Some things cross the line.

And naming a sports team after a government-sponsored genocide?

Well, from now on you can call me, on this issue anyway, Mr. PC.

Political Couch.