Political Correctness In Sports Research Paper

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Political Correctness Is Ruining American Tradition Over the past decade, it has become more and more apparent that traditions in sports, specifically football, have been undermined by political correctness in America. Nicknames for football teams such as Savages, Blackhawks, Seminoles, and Redskins have long been integrated into the core of the sport and are still to this day are highly common nickname for teams at the high school, collegiate, and even professional level. However, the extinction of these names from sports is a real possibility and could be coming sooner than imagined if action isn’t taken. Since 2005, the National Collegiate Athletic Association has “warned more than a dozen schools… that they would face sanctions if they …show more content…
It is clear that the banning of Native American names or logos from sports is something that should not be sought after any longer considering the popularity of the name, the long rooted tradition of the name, and the low percentage of people who are against its usage. In an article written on the website FiveThirtyEight.com, Hayley Munguia investigates why professional teams such as the Washington Redskins are being ridiculed by the public for their team name while the other 2,128 sports teams in the United States with logos or names referencing natives are not talked about as much or even at all. In fact, in a recent Straw Poll that I posted online, I asked voters whether schools and organizations should ban the use of Native American mascots, an overwhelming 85% or 92 out of 108 total votes answered no, while 11% answered yes and a marginally small 4% said that they were uncertain on the issue. Although a small sample size, the results do show that most people do not find the use of Native American names offensive. This almost certainly proves the point that the usage of these names and logos of the natives is not an issue with a majority of the …show more content…
The final proof of evident support of the nickname and its continued existence lies within a survey given by the Red Mesa High School in which “88 percent of students and 71 percent of faculty members surveyed by the school…. favored keeping the Redskins name and mascot. On another question, 60 percent of students disagreed that Redskins is a slur, 7 percent said the word is offensive and one-third said they weren’t sure” (Shapira). All-in-all, a theoretically generated conclusion could be that that this whole issue on the sensitivity of the Native American nicknames being used in sports is merely a terrifically small batch of a mixed group of people who are just wanting to pick a fight with somebody. No evidence has been shown in any reports, theses, general accounts by Native Americans, or anecdotes by anyone that has clear, supported evidence that the use of these names is oppresses or discriminates the Native American race or causes any harm or defamation to their people. In a guest commentary in the Denver Post, Ellie Reynolds dissects the harm that is brought to natives due to the protesting and fighting over banning the name. In the commentary, Reynolds reflects on a proposed bill, which was rejected, in Colorado that would’ve banned any school in the state from using Native American likenesses, logos, and nicknames. She writes, “As a

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