I was a football fan before I was a hockey fan.
One of the earliest photos of me is Dad holding me when I was a baby, while he was wearing his Edmonton Eskimos jersey. Dad’s always loved the Eskies, even though he was born and raised in southern Alberta, has lived in B.C. since 1972, and is married to a woman from Saskatchewan.
(How’s that for an allegiance to a team)?
That jersey likely dates back to the late 1960s or early 1970s, and would be a collector’s item by anyone’s standards, but it’s definitely going to be one now.
It seems the Edmonton Eskimos will be changing their name, amidst mounting pressure from the public, especially sponsors.
Honestly, on the list of team names that I have a problem with, Eskimos is near the bottom. It’s not because it’s Dad’s team, or because there’s a rich tradition that has seen the team win the most Grey Cup titles (11) since the modern CFL was founded in 1958.
And you can’t say that they should keep their team name because it’s tradition. There are a lot of traditions out there that are woefully outdated and need to end.
The name is a nod to Edmonton’s northern location. The city is one of the largest northern cities on the planet. And Eskimos is a much prouder-sounding and applicable name than the Polar Bears or Northerners.
I’m disappointed to see the name change, but not surprised. You knew it would happen eventually.
What is surprising is that they’re one of the first to make the change, because there are worse culprits.
The Washington Redskins name had to go. Most sensibly-minded people realized a long time ago that a name based on a slur was utterly inappropriate. I remember first hearing talk about the name when I was in high school; the calls for a name change started decades ago.
It’s too bad that it took this long for a change to happen. And it’s too bad that Washington’s brain trust didn’t move on the name until after sponsors threatened to withdraw their support.
(Then again, given the track record of their owner, it’s not surprising that he didn’t grasp the need for a name change).
I’m sure we’ll see the Cleveland Indians drop their name before too long. At the very least, they’re due for a new logo. Something a little less racially insensitive. As for the name, maybe it’s time to stop celebrating Christopher Columbus’ 528-year-old mistake.
And I’m sure the Atlanta Braves will drop the tomahawk chop from their games.
I don’t find names like Braves, Eskimos and Chiefs to be offensive like the Redskins or the Indians’ Chief Wahoo.
The name change for the Eskimos leaves me wondering where this will end. I’m sure that the Chicago Blackhawks will eventually be forced to change their name and logo, even if the name is meant as a tribute to Chief Blackhawk, and the logo and jersey are among the best in sports.
Will we eventually have to drop a name such as the Canadiens for Montreal’s NHL team, or a monicker like the Canucks for Vancouver’s NHL squad? After all, Canucks is a slang term for Canadian.
Will it eventually get to the point that we can’t have a name based on an identity that people have no control or choice over? Or are we going to find ourselves picking and choosing which ones to retain and which ones to drop?
It’s good that we’re having these discussions and that changes are being made, and that more changes are coming. Some of these are long overdue.
But others take the issue a little too far. When people are talking about changing the name of the Masters golf tournament, because of the racist views of one of its founders, you know there’s a problem. The Masters has its name because it’s associated with greatness, and not because of connotations to slavery.
(And yes, some of the opinions expressed by those involved with the Masters in the past are frightening. It’s hard to believe people once clinged to those beliefs.
I think the Eskimos name should remain and we should focus on more pressing issues.
At the same time, I just hope this new Edmonton CFL team, whatever their name is, will have a league to play in once the mess with COVID-19 is resolved, and for the sake of Edmonton CFL fans, the club will remain one of the league’s prestige organizations.
