# Renaming something if the minority doesn't mind but the majority does **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 14, 2020, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317 "2020-07-14T16:14:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/42 "2020-07-15T11:39:15Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > To the OP, do you have any examples at all from the real world? If not, then it seems like this doesn’t seem like a debate. Maybe ask a mod to move it to IMHO? Wasn’t there an issue a while back with cartoon character Speedy Gonzales? I seem to remember that Warner wanted to shelve him due to racial insensiytivity, before finding out that he was actually pretty popular among Latinx. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/43 "2020-07-15T11:47:13Z")
Im not sure it was Speedy himself but rather the entire village of lazy, slow mice in his standalone cartoons, not to mention the bandito cats. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/44 "2020-07-15T12:13:06Z")
Good example! And, the answer to the OP appears to be that the minority’s views will be respected. Speedy Gonzales returned to Cartoon Network. From the Wiki page: > Despite such controversy over potentially offensive characterizations, Speedy Gonzales remained a popular character in Latin America.[6] The Hispanic-American rights organization League of United Latin American Citizens called Speedy a cultural icon, and thousands of users registered their support of the character on the [hispaniconline.com](http://hispaniconline.com) message boards. Fan campaigns to put Speedy back on the air resulted in the return of the animated shorts to Cartoon Network in 2002.[7] ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/45 "2020-07-15T12:55:10Z")
> [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](#): > > Customers – ticket buyers – are the ones who matter. The biggest driver for the name change in Washington appears to be the corporate sponsors. That’s where the real money is these days. And Washington season ticket holders (and all ticket sales) have dropped considerably in recent years. > **[Redskins end their season ticket wait list, which they once claimed had...](https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/redskins-end-their-season-ticket-wait-list-which-they-once-claimed-had-200000-people/2018/06/13/61abd2c8-6f26-11e8-bf86-a2351b5ece99_story.html)** > > Team officials detail a shift in efforts to appeal to fans amid signs of declining interest. ---
**Author:** ![puddleglum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puddleglum/32/137_2.png) [@puddleglum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puddleglum)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/46 "2020-07-15T16:56:32Z")
Offensive is not a objective reality. Everybody has a different threshold for being offended. The question is who gets to decide what is offensive, should it be the most easily offended, the least or the median. The polls show that most Indians do not consider Redskins offensive. Why should the opinion of the majority be ignored? ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/47 "2020-07-15T17:05:35Z")
> [@puddleglum](#): > > The polls show that most Indians do not consider Redskins offensive The many problems with “the polls” (actually two specific surveys) were already point out, of course. ---
**Author:** ![puddleglum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puddleglum/32/137_2.png) [@puddleglum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puddleglum)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/48 "2020-07-15T17:09:06Z")
Those critiques are very weak. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/49 "2020-07-15T17:09:31Z")
Care to address the points they raise with your own cites? ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/50 "2020-07-15T18:42:58Z")
Ticket sales are actually a pretty small part of the revenue. Much more comes from sponsorships and TV rights. If it is a matter of pleasing the ticket-holders or the people who actually matter, they will tell the ticket-holders to piss off. They may be die hard fans, but they are an insignificant part of a team’s revenue. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/52 "2020-07-15T20:21:46Z")
And today’s fans will be dead in 70 years too. What’s your point? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/53 "2020-07-15T20:27:40Z")
Read the post I replied to: "_To heck with the fans. When MLB integrated, some of “the fans” abused Jackie Robinson and so did players on other teams. If the fans want to be racist gits, then that’s on them. The team does not need to–and should not–coddle their sensitive souls."_ What the holy fuck does the dead fans of 1947 have to do with today’s fans? Do you think the racism of 1947 is like the racism of today? ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/54 "2020-07-15T21:58:12Z")
> [@Cheesesteak](#): > > Take the Fighting Irish. Some overly concerned folks might look at it as a reference to stereotypical drunken brawling, a slur on Irish people. They may not know that Irish people LOVE Notre Dame because of the name, and that the Fighting moniker comes not from barroom fisticuffs, but the students violently breaking up a KKK rally in the 1920’s. Of the several different speculated origins of the name mentioned in Wikipedia, [Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Notre_Dame_Fighting_Irish) , this particular reference does not even get mentioned. The name “fighting Irish” goes back to the Civil War and I would not be surprised to discover a brouhaha involving Catholic Notre Dame kids and the notoriously anti-Catholic KKK, but I do not find the name story persuasive. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Stamos\_Left\_Ear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_stamos_left_ear/32/3198_2.png) [@John\_Stamos\_Left\_Ear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Stamos_Left_Ear)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/55 "2020-07-15T22:52:09Z")
> [@puddleglum](#): > > The polls show that most Indians do not consider Redskins offensive. I will just put you on ignore if you won’t read my posts before responding to them. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Stamos\_Left\_Ear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_stamos_left_ear/32/3198_2.png) [@John\_Stamos\_Left\_Ear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Stamos_Left_Ear)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/56 "2020-07-15T22:52:45Z")
> [@puddleglum](#): > > Those critiques are very weak. Show your work. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2020, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/57 "2020-07-16T00:02:56Z")
My point is rather obvious. The comment “it’s only the fans that matter” is nonsense. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2020, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/58 "2020-07-16T00:09:05Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > What the holy fuck does the dead fans of 1947 have to do with today’s fans? Do you think the racism of 1947 is like the racism of today? And how is “today’s racism” different from “yesterday’s racism”? As far as I can see, it’s still the same disgusting, ignorant, dangerous nonsense now as it was then. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2020, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/59 "2020-07-16T01:09:55Z")
It is nice that you think that. Clearly, electing Obama, the 1964 Civil rights act, etc means we havent advanced beyond 1947. 😱 If you really think that, then I bid you good day sir. there is no use attempting to have a discussion with anyone who has that opinion. ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2020, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/60 "2020-07-16T01:55:49Z")
You forgot Oprah and Bill Cosby . . . but I guess I see why you left Bill out. CMC ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2020, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/61 "2020-07-16T02:22:43Z")
@DrDeth: Yeah, right. And all those “put the white back in White House” stickers, signs, etc. had nothing to do with time-honored racism. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2020, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317/63 "2020-07-16T06:18:54Z")
While Obama was president, I saw plenty of those while I was in Georgia. A number of posters commented on those back then, too. I’m not the only one posting here who’s seen those. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-something-if-the-minority-doesnt-mind-but-the-majority-does/915317.md?page=4)