(Photo: www.nepeanredskins.com)
By Jorge Barrera
APTN National News
OTTAWA–An Ottawa minor football organization is considering spiking its name “Redskins.”
Steve Dean, head of National Capital Amateur Football Association and president of the Nepean Redskins, told APTN National News late Tuesday evening that the organization would be discussing changing the team’s name with parents.
The team has come under criticism for its continued use of the name and the issue has received extensive attention from Ottawa radio, television and newspaper outlets.
A member of rising electronic music group A Tribe Called Red has led the latest charge against the name. Ojibway musician Ian Campeau, also known as Deejay Ndn, ignited an online Twitter and Facebook campaign to convince the Nepean football organization to change its name.
Campeau says the team is using a racist slur that normalizes discrimination against Indigenous people.
Dean said the name change would cost about $125,000, which he said is a heavy price for a volunteer-driven organization that seeks to make the game of football accessible to youth from all economic backgrounds.
APTN National News spoke to several parents Wednesday evening during two of the team’s practices. Parents expressed mixed feelings about the issue, ranging from anger over the controversy to a desire for open debate on the matter.
APTN National News will have a full story during this evening’s news broadcast.
I’d like to say I believe it started with this well written open letter. This is how I first heard about it…http://leannesimpson.ca/2012/08/27/an-open-letter-to-the-nepean-redskins-the-national-capital-amateur-football-association/