The Power to Change

Frank’s Essay - Name Game

Somewhere between 800 and 900 A. D., a Viking raider named Walt wreaked havoc along the east coast of what is now Scotland. He established a settlement that grew into the modern city of Aberdeen. His descendants were fruitful and multiplied. As time went on, the “L” was dropped, and Walt’s sons become the clan Watson. Some relocated south into England while others spread through the Scottish Highlands. Watsons on both sides were casualties of the Bonnie Prince Charlie war.

I am proud of my Viking heritage and feel less of a person when teams belittle my ancestors. I think our Government should outlaw any reference to Vikings or Vandals that I feel to be inappropriate. The memory of the sons of Walt the Raider should be considered above all other criteria. They were also the originators of the Gaelic language still spoken in the hills of western Scotland. So, any and all mascots that refer to my heritage should be abolished. That would include the Highlanders, Gaels, and Scotties. My maternal great-grandfather was an Irish immigrant named Peter McGernigan. I never knew him. He ran off while my Grandmother was a toddler, but I can stand in the front row and wear green during the Saint Patrick’s Day parade. I deplore the way that Notre Dame abuses my Irish heritage. I would support a campaign to urge them to abandon their mascot. If it worked with the Washington DC football team, it should have a chance with Notre Dame.

I understand why the name of Sheridan Elementary School had to be changed. He made a disparaging remark to a group of Native Americans 150 years ago. He was misquoted, and his remarks taken out of context, but the gist is the same. We should also change anything named in honor of President Truman. He didn’t think much of the Japanese people. He waged war on them unmercifully. Franklin Roosevelt did much the same. He characterized the attack on Pearl Harbor as “unprovoked and dastardly”. He even went so far as to pen up all Japanese Americans in barbed wire enclosures. What do little Asian kids think when they go to Roosevelt Elementary School?

The more I think about it, I think the use of all historic names should be banned, especially those of our founding fathers. The Constitutional Congress met in Philadelphia on what was originally Iroquois lands. There were no provisions in the Constitution for native Americans. Then simply weren’t mentioned. African Americans were, however. The population of each new state determined how many representatives they were allotted. Black male slaves were counted as 3/5 of a white man. Women weren’t counted at all. Ben Franklin, the great compromiser, came up with the idea. Thus, anything bearing Franklin’s name should be struck down. Jefferson voted for the 3/5 compromise even though he had a black mistress, but the worse transgressor was probably George Washington.

Washington waged war on the Indians more than ten years before the revolution. He was instrumental in clearing out the natives to make way for white settlers both before and after the United States became an independent nation. He also owned slaves and was chairman of the congress that agreed to the 3/5 compromise. I move we strike the name Washington from our state and rename it Insleeland. Inslee is the only perfect politician in our history.

Frank Watson is a retired Air Force Colonel and long-time resident of Eastern Washington. He has been a free-lance columnist for over 20 years.