What's In a Name?
Is your name the most important thing about you?
Romeo said of Juliette, “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet”. Indeed. So much effort, trying to determine politically correct names. And for what? They’re just names. Isn’t the meaning, the intent, the important part? Am I a racist if I say N-word, but a fine upstanding citizen if I say “African American”? Is it really that easy? Of course not. Only a damned fool would think so. Only a damned fool would believe they are not racist, simply because they say the PC words, but not the “racist” words. Face it, there’s a lot of damned fools out there.
Let’s try this one out: Why is it inappropriate to refer to America’s first citizens (arguably) as Indians, but desirable to refer to them as Native Americans? Because they weren’t from India? Do Indians give a damn? I have it on good authority that they don’t. Is Native American better? Why? America is named for Amerigo Vespucci, whose name somehow ended up being the name that Europeans have given to the New World. How in the hell is that supposed to be more desirable to “Indians”? Instead of naming them for a country in Asia, we’ll name them after an Italian cartographer. Yeah, right. And, how fond are Indians of calling their land the New World? It’s kind of Old to them.
Here's a question: What did Indians call themselves, before Europeans were here to make up names for them? It appears that they referred to each other by tribal names and nation names. So, at the same time that Europeans were referring to each other as Italian, French, Spanish, etc, Indians were referring to each other as Inca, Aztec, Cherrokee, Seminole, etc. Of course, we spell and pronounce those names in English, but you get the idea. The funny thing is, as we think up stupid reasons to change what names we use in reference to Indians, we use Indian names for many locations, such as Nantucket, Miami, Potomac River, Pensacola, Tampa, and MOST state names. It’s a LONG list.
Let’s try out a few more pointless PC distinctions: Why is it wrong to name a baseball team the Indians, but OK to call a football team the Vikings? In both cases, the names were chosen because of the legends of fierce warriors. One is OK, one is not. Why? How about the Chiefs (bad) and the Patriots (OK). Are there any adults in charge of all this? We have the Fighting Irish, but felt compelled to do away with the Braves. Why? I find it especially amusing that Maimi U of OHIO did away with the Redskin mascot, in favor of Redhawk. But “Miami” is the name of an Indian tribe, and “Ohio” is an Indian word meaning “great river”.
The fact is, nobody names their team, their mascot, their city, or their state after Indians as a form of derision. They do it, in some cases out of respect, and in other cases simply because that’s always been the name, even in Indian times. I fail to see the racism.
But wait! There’s more! How about Uncle Ben? Why is it racist to name a product after a black guy, but it’s OK to name a product after lily white Little Debbie? Aunt Jemimah, Cream of Wheat, Eskimo Pie? What of it? Why were those names and images dropped, but it’s still just fine to depict the Quaker Oats guy?
So, what’s the big deal? The big deal is that the same minds that have between little and no comprehension of the big picture, such that they can waste everybody’s time on this, are the same minds that presume to comprehend racism. They are the ones who have appointed themselves to be our moral center, even as they demonstrate their cluelessness. Is racism bad? Sure. Of course. So, what should we do about it? Should we all measure ourselves and our biases based on what words we use? On what words someone ELSE uses? No, and no. They are mere words. Without consideration of intent, there is no there, there. When people allow themselves to be distracted from cultural reality by creating tempests in teapots over words, they fail to recognize the true cultural realities. I’ve heard N-word said by bigots, and I’ve heard it said by people who simply used the term because they’re used to using it. But if a person doesn’t know better than to not say N-word, then they MUST be a bigot, right? Why? It is what is in their heart, and how they treat people that matters. Right? If a person has failed to be adequately connected to the latest PC mantra, I’d say that might mean they are concentrating on what matters, instead of the pointless BS. Too many people are more concerned with how they appear than with how they feel. Too many people’s “opinions” are just a parroting of what “thought leaders” have told them.
So, what’s in a name? A rose by any other name would smell as sweet. And, as they always say down home, “You can call me anything you want, just don’t call me late to dinner”. Sage words.