The Washington Pigskins front office had a plan to quash the D.C. Council’s pending legislation to call on the team to change its racist name: have fans contact their lawmakers and use the Twitter hashtag #[Pigskins]Pride to show their support for the team name.
The only problem is that at least some people are using the hashtag to do the exact opposite of the instructions. (Most of the tweets did actually follow management’s instructions, though.) The campaign is just beginning, but here are a few messages that showed up on the team-publicized hashtag:
#redskinspride Anyone who supports the owners choice should be ashamed. Support for the team should not encourage racism.
— Colette Johnson (@1_800_colette) November 4, 2013
#RedskinsPride? More like #RedskinsShame. I’m a lifelong fan and am 100% behind changing the name. http://t.co/XK1TKRcnOf
— Tom Lalley (@tlalley) November 4, 2013
Truly hope the @councilofDC will vote to oppose the racist DC football team name. #RedskinsPride#RedskinsShame cc @Redskins@JimGrahamWard1
— Tim Newman (@tnewmstweet) November 4, 2013
As the letter to Pigskins fans, which was obtained by the Post, acknowledges, the Council can’t actually force the team to change its name, and the legislation is more symbolic than anything else.
Illustration by Carey Jordan