Never the Same

“No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.” This idea is at the root of why I love to take sunrise shots of the river. On one hand, I get better at understanding my lens and my light all the time. On the other hand, even if I didn’t, the shot would be different every single time. The sunrise moment on this strip of land in front of this channel to the bay is my existential pinpoint of home. I coined my own mantra for this intersection of place and time. “The river takes me home.”

Washington Football

It’s really unfortunate that the Redskins’ name is such a relic. One of the oldest teams in the league and one of the strongest traditions.

Art Monk is still a hero of mine. Coach Gibbs too.

The name is the only thing that connects this organization to the team I grew to love as a kid.

This team has a different owner, a different venue, a different coach x 10. The only loyalty equity that remains is this backwards, unfortunate, relic of a name.

I understand that some people don’t mind the name. I also understand that how a person commands language often reflects their level of education first, and their interpersonal awareness, a close second. The word choice of this team name is backed up by an ugly cultural history and complex heritage.

It always seemed odd but it’s only recently become a discussion.

As I pondered how the team may maintain a visual identity while preserving decency on a human level, I considered Redhawks and other variations that could keep the R, the color scheme and the feather. But those marks will always say “Redskins” whether that’s what it says or not.

I began playing with the logotype and rearranging the letters to see what may be there. “Ridneks” is a total winner. Change the name, keep the logotype. This communicates the unrelenting commitment that Dan Snyder has to “honoring” a continent of diverse peoples with one overarching approximated slur.

Here’s an alternate logotype rehash that would probably sell tshirts like hotcakes at a flag rally.

skins-skinerd