A true case of practicing what you preach if I’ve ever seen one.
Former NFL official Mike Carey (who recently retired after 19 years of service) has revealed to the Washington Post that he began a silent protest of the name “Redskins” all the way back in 2006. Carey requested to not be assigned to any Washington preseason or regular season games and the NFL rightly obliged.
“I’ve called them Washington all my life,” Carey told Mike Wise of the Washington Post. “And I will continue to call them Washington. The league respectfully honored my request not to officiate Washington. It happened sometime after I refereed their playoff game in 2006, I think.”
As the first African-American to work a Super Bowl and one of the more highly respected officials in the game, Carey knew the value in taking a stand when something didn’t seem quite right.
“It just became clear to me that to be in the middle of the field, where something disrespectful is happening, was probably not the best thing for me,” Carey explained. “I know that if a team had a derogatory name for African Americans, I would help those who helped extinguish that name. I have quite a few friends who are Native Americans. And even if I didn’t have Native American friends, the name of the team is disrespectful.”
Carey, who now works as the rules analyst for CBS sports; isn’t the only person taking a stand against the offensive team name. Tony Dungy and Phil Simms have gone on record as saying they will not use the term on broadcasts this season.
Is the term ‘Redskin’ offensive to use, even though team owner Dan Snyder is swearing up and down that the term is one of honor and endearment? Or should the voices of the people offended be amplified and given more consideration?
[h/t LBS]