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I understand that some of you are upset about this. I was upset when I learned that the Bullets name would be changing, but I grew up and came to embrace that change.
As I wrote in a thread on this same topic last year,
I used to go to Bullets games as a kid. Yes, I have plenty of nostalgic memories regarding the team and, yes, I think they could've done a lot better than "Wizards" for a replacement, but I am 100% thankful that the team rebranded. "Wizards" may still sound weird to me two decades from now - but I'm really glad that it won't sound strange to future generations. That will be THEIR expectation. They'll forge nostalgic connections to the WIZARDS name - not "Bullets," and that, to me, is a sign of progress.
The existing team name is a racial slur. That's indisputable. Given that it is a slur, we're going to treat it as such.
I get that people feel as though something's being taken away from them or ruined for them, but it's something that never should've been yours to begin with. If you were given a birthday gift that turned out to be stolen property, you'd be sad to see it go but, at the same time, it's only "unfair" if you completely ignore the gift's origins.
If YOU don't find the name offensive, fine, but that doesn't give you the right to say that NOBODY should find it offensive because it's not "meant" to be offensive. It's a slur. Slurs ARE offensive.
Further, if I stand on your foot, I have no right to tell you whether it's painful or not.
This is like standing on somebody's foot, telling them that because YOU don't feel pain, it's not painful, and refusing to move because moving would be inconvenient and the other person just needs to get over it.
While I've followed the local team since childhood, I find the name completely disrespectful and cannot support the franchise on that basis.
I don't have to go along with it. I don't have to permit the slur to be posted on our forums. So, if I have no right to complain about Snyder's business, you have no right to complain about NikeTalk's business. Does that sound fair?
This team represents our local community just as NikeTalk represents an online community. I don't think it's unreasonable for people to have an opinion about our policies, just as I don't think it's unreasonable for people to have an opinion about the local NFL franchise.
And if people choose to boycott NikeTalk as a result of this, I'm fine with that. If I expect Snyder to lose a little money to put himself on the right side of history, I should be willing to do the same. And we are.
And that's what this comes down to. The existing name is on the WRONG side of history. NikeTalk prohibited users from calling something "gay" as a pejorative thirteen years ago, when such prejudice was even more popular than it is now. Many people disagreed with that decision. Some users fought tooth and nail against our efforts to weed out the use of abbreviations and substitutes for racial slurs. We held firm on that, too.
Our goal is to make NikeTalk a safe and welcoming place for users of all ages and backgrounds, and permitting slurs is contrary to that goal. We have every right to make this move and while I would love to have your support, we know we can't please everyone and we ultimately have to do what we believe is right.
If you can't agree with that, I hope you can at least respect it.
We have the ability to replace the lead post in any topic to ensure that lead posts receive regular updates where appropriate. If we absolutely have to, we'll make a replacement in this case and another user who is willing to honor our policy can assume the responsibility.
As we don't have to lock the thread and create a replacement to accomplish this, the disruption would be minimal. If anyone's interested in taking on the task in the event that we have to make a change, let me know.
If you just want to call the team "the skins," in the topic post, suggest it in the contest thread and vote for it, or vote for "pigskins" when polling opens. After the contest ends, we'll add a pinned topic here in the S&T forum to make sure that new visitors from that point forward aren't confused by the replacement name.
As I wrote in a thread on this same topic last year,
I used to go to Bullets games as a kid. Yes, I have plenty of nostalgic memories regarding the team and, yes, I think they could've done a lot better than "Wizards" for a replacement, but I am 100% thankful that the team rebranded. "Wizards" may still sound weird to me two decades from now - but I'm really glad that it won't sound strange to future generations. That will be THEIR expectation. They'll forge nostalgic connections to the WIZARDS name - not "Bullets," and that, to me, is a sign of progress.
The existing team name is a racial slur. That's indisputable. Given that it is a slur, we're going to treat it as such.
I get that people feel as though something's being taken away from them or ruined for them, but it's something that never should've been yours to begin with. If you were given a birthday gift that turned out to be stolen property, you'd be sad to see it go but, at the same time, it's only "unfair" if you completely ignore the gift's origins.
If YOU don't find the name offensive, fine, but that doesn't give you the right to say that NOBODY should find it offensive because it's not "meant" to be offensive. It's a slur. Slurs ARE offensive.
Further, if I stand on your foot, I have no right to tell you whether it's painful or not.
This is like standing on somebody's foot, telling them that because YOU don't feel pain, it's not painful, and refusing to move because moving would be inconvenient and the other person just needs to get over it.
I lived in DC for years and grew up in the area. I'm a diehard Wizards fan and manage the team's season thread.How long has meth been openly against the team?
I was always under the impression he was a homer.
While I've followed the local team since childhood, I find the name completely disrespectful and cannot support the franchise on that basis.
Exactly.Where is this thread that you guys are talking about?
And honestly it's not that hard to understand why the name NEEDS to change.
Not all traditions are good ones.
In this case, NikeTalk IS my business. We've prohibited slurs for 13 years and I am absolutely DONE with making an exception for this one just because some spoiled billionaire had the audacity to trademark it and print it on a jersey.So they should spend MILLIONS of dollars changing the team name because a small group of people are offended by it? Sorry, it's not my business to tell them what to do, just like it's none of your business.
I don't have to go along with it. I don't have to permit the slur to be posted on our forums. So, if I have no right to complain about Snyder's business, you have no right to complain about NikeTalk's business. Does that sound fair?
This team represents our local community just as NikeTalk represents an online community. I don't think it's unreasonable for people to have an opinion about our policies, just as I don't think it's unreasonable for people to have an opinion about the local NFL franchise.
And if people choose to boycott NikeTalk as a result of this, I'm fine with that. If I expect Snyder to lose a little money to put himself on the right side of history, I should be willing to do the same. And we are.
And that's what this comes down to. The existing name is on the WRONG side of history. NikeTalk prohibited users from calling something "gay" as a pejorative thirteen years ago, when such prejudice was even more popular than it is now. Many people disagreed with that decision. Some users fought tooth and nail against our efforts to weed out the use of abbreviations and substitutes for racial slurs. We held firm on that, too.
Our goal is to make NikeTalk a safe and welcoming place for users of all ages and backgrounds, and permitting slurs is contrary to that goal. We have every right to make this move and while I would love to have your support, we know we can't please everyone and we ultimately have to do what we believe is right.
If you can't agree with that, I hope you can at least respect it.
We're holding a contest to get the community involved and make this a positive rather than a negative. We'd like to start a new tradition and find a name that our users enjoy and represents the character of the community.I'll edit the thread title accordingly, but I'm not acknowledging (sp?) the "winner" of the renaming contest. I think that's beyond lame. Meth made the executive call on filtering the name and that should be it. The NTer who wins the contest will certainly enjoy the $500, but that name will not be used in this thread. Just my .02
We have the ability to replace the lead post in any topic to ensure that lead posts receive regular updates where appropriate. If we absolutely have to, we'll make a replacement in this case and another user who is willing to honor our policy can assume the responsibility.
As we don't have to lock the thread and create a replacement to accomplish this, the disruption would be minimal. If anyone's interested in taking on the task in the event that we have to make a change, let me know.
If you just want to call the team "the skins," in the topic post, suggest it in the contest thread and vote for it, or vote for "pigskins" when polling opens. After the contest ends, we'll add a pinned topic here in the S&T forum to make sure that new visitors from that point forward aren't confused by the replacement name.