A poll of Native Americans found that the vast majority do not object to the Washington NFL team’s name.
The Washington Post commissioned a poll with a randomly selected national sample of 504 Native American adults. That poll asked, “The professional football team in Washington calls itself the Washington Redskins. As a Native American, do you find that name offensive, or doesn’t it bother you?”
The result was a strong argument for Dan Snyder’s case that his team does not need to change its name: A whopping 90 percent answered that the name doesn’t bother them. Only 9 percent called the name offensive, with 1 percent having no opinion.
Another question in the poll found that 73 percent of Native Americans do not think the term “Redskin” is disrespectful. That included 75 percent of Native Americans who are members of tribes, and 71 percent who are not members of tribes.
The results of this poll are consistent with previous polls showing that most Native Americans aren’t bothered by the team’s name, nor do they consider it an important issue facing their community. The question, then, is whether Snyder should show deference to the 9 percent who are offended by the team name. He has shown no inclination to do so, and will surely see this poll as support for that stance.