During Tuesday’s Election Day Special on ESPN2’s “First Take,” co-hosts Max Kellerman and Stephen A. Smith debated if the Washington Redskins should change their name.
Kellerman took Hillary Clinton’s side, saying the team should change their name, adding that it is “outrageous” that people still refer to the Redskins by name.
“I don’t even say the name, and I don’t think you should, either, I don’t think Stephen A. should ,either, I don’t think anyone should. I don’t think ESPN or anyone or NFL should refer to them. It is outrageous that that still goes on,” Kellerman told moderator Molly Qerim.
He reasoned, “Should you refer to a team by a name that you wouldn’t go up to a member of that group, a Native American, and freely use that word to describe them? Would you really? Would you go up to a Native American person, someone who identified as Native American, particularly if they are aware of the tribe to which they belong that’s really a big part of their cultural identity and refer to them as the name of that team? Because if the answer is no, we shouldn’t be using that name at all.”
Smith said he is “sensitive to the Native American community,” but they need to be in “unison” against the name “Redskins” before forcing the team to change their name.
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