My real interest in the Redskins started when I was around ten years old. The Riggins family moved in next door to my best friend, Mary Hurley; she and her siblings would babysit John's young kids (who would later go on to attend our Catholic grammar school), and she'd tell me about her interactions with the star running back. This was right before the Joe Gibbs' years, and the real heyday of the Redskins was about to begin. 

It's hard to overstate how important the Washington Redskins were – and still are – to the entire DC area. Even though Baltimore still had the Colts back then, the Redskins were THE team. We won the Super Bowl in 1982, lost in 1983, and won again in 1988 and 1992. Riggins had actually moved to my neighborhood, and allegedly attended our Catholic church, although I never saw him, before the '82 season; my mom drove me to celebrate that Super Bowl win outside his house, which was, of course, pitch black.

The Redskins of those days were an experience that united me, a kid from the Northern Virginia suburbs, with the working-class black men of inner-city Washington. What else could do something like that? I was able to attend a few games at the old RFK Stadium, and everyone's favorite fan was Chief Zee, the black man who dressed as an Indian chief at every home game. He was a legend because he was celebrating the very best of the Redskins and the cultural heritage they represented. 

The Redskins, and their name, united a town that is often divided.

Then came the Dan Snyder years. Oh, they were bleak. He's possibly the worst owner the NFL has ever seen. One thing Snyder had going for him, however, was that he was apparently dug in on keeping the Redskins name. 

The controversy over the name was the result of a white-guilt campaign contrived by Mike Wise, who was then a sports writer at – wait for it! – the Washington Post. Yes, there had been rumblings that the name was racist before Wise came along with his leftist nonsense, but Snyder had managed to keep those rumblings at bay. 

Then, Mike Wise went full social justice warrior right when we were at peak Barack Obama-led division in our country. Woke was becoming a thing, and people like uber-white gasbag Mike Wise leaned heavily into it. Wise had a sports talk show on DC's 106.7 FM/WJFK radio station back then, and he, ironically, beat that damn drum incessantly. Always from a place of him being so in tune with Native Americans, and we regular schmucks couldn't dream of being as enlightened as he. He's your typical leftist blowhard.

He was also the first one I know of to start with that godawful "Washington football team" dreck. 

Here's some coverage of Wise from back in the day:

Mike Wise, who has written myriad columns and hundreds of tweets on the topic, offered yet another perspective. He issued a proclamation that there will be no more debate on the issue at all. "The debate over whether a people are denigrated or honored by the name of the Washington NFL team, like the absurd debate over whether the name is a unifying force, is over," Wise said, going on to explain in a victory-lap column that a name change is not only a certainty, but an imminent one (he estimates the name will change within three years).

No one, and I mean no one, liked or likes Mike Wise, but his browbeating gained steam and was ultimately successful. Dan Snyder folded and my team became the "Commanders." Our uniforms changed and our fight song, the storied "Hail to the Redskins," was turned into some sort of watered-down schlock that no true Redskins fan would dream of singing.

But, the times they are a-changin'. Josh Harris has bought the team and brought in new blood, and we have our franchise quarterback in Jayden Daniels. The team is starting to recapture some of the magic of its glory days and it's past time for them to reclaim the Redskins name.

It sounds like one Republican senator, Steve Daines of Montana, might think so, too. Here's why:

The former Washington Commanders logo was designed and modeled after a Montana Indian tribe. It’s why Montana Senator Steve Daines is calling on the National Football League to uncensor the logo on media and merchandise.

Daines said the “Redskins” logo was inspired by Blackie Wetzel, a member of the Blackfeet Tribe. Last month, the senator said talks between Wetzel’s family and the NFL to restore the logo went well.

“I urge the team to continue their dialogue and reach a conclusion that honors their past, honors Don Wetzel’s vision to use the logo to help Indian Country, and honors the will of the Blackfeet Tribe to restore the logo to a place of honor and prominence,” said Daines.

Much like Mike Wise used white guilt to chip away at the support for the Redskins name, it seems like Sen. Daines is taking a common sense, piecemeal approach to bringing it back, starting with the logo. 

NFL Commish Roger Goodell and Commanders owner (yes, Sixers owner too) Josh Harris just walked into Senate Minority Whip John Thune’s office.

— Andrew Desiderio (@AndrewDesiderio) December 2, 2024

If the results of the 2024 elections told us anything, it's that Americans are sick of the Mike Wises of the world and the inane ideas they've been forcing on us for years. We like the way things were before, and that's a-okay.

There is a lot of work yet to be done to undo the damage caused by the shameful attack on the Redskins name. Most local sports people still won't use the name "Redskins" when talking about the football team for fear that the woke mob will descend on them and their advertisers. The thing is, the listeners and readers absolutely do use the Redskins name – we've never stopped and we never will.

It's about to be 2025. It's okay to be normal. It's okay to use the name "Redskins" proudly. If it was once a slur, which is debatable, it is now surely the highest of compliments as it represents next-level achievement. Time to bring it back. 

If this topic is of interest to you, I highly recommend revisiting Bob Hoge's 2022 article about the legal fight to use Indian mascots.