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The head of the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, Natan Obed, is a determined advocate of changing the football team’s name. It seems to be the case that some Inuit are comfortable with the name of the CFL Eskimos, and think that Obed’s position is contrived attention-grabbing. Opinion among the Inuit could hardly be other than divided: hell, it is not too hard to find American aboriginal people who think “Washington Redskins” is just fine.

What strikes me is that Tapiriit and its leaders have to be taken pretty seriously as an envoy of the Inuit people. It is not a government, but it has a lot of the characteristics pertaining to one for the purpose of this discussion: for one, Obed is an elected representative. Both those words are important. So if we are tempted to say that he doesn’t speak for Canada’s Inuit, and start nose-counting among the people that chose him collectively, we are… well, maybe the appropriate metaphor is a football one: “moving the goalposts.”

Of course the team should consult widely among the Inuit, as it assures us it is already doing. But speaking for myself, I have watched white journalists raise questions about the Eskimos nickname for a long time, and my question was always, “Very well, but what do the Inuit as a group really make of it?”

Of course the team should consult widely among the Inuit

As attached as I am to the “Edmonton Eskimos” brand—which is, in the end, just a brand—it would not be fair for me to now say, “Gosh, I guess I just don’t like Obed’s answer.” And I see no real prospect of his answer being reversed or opposed by a wave of passionate positive support from northern Eskies fans of Inuit ethnicity.

It might be one thing if changing “Eskimos” required an expensive redesign of uniforms and other football paraphernalia, but the costs, while real, will be limited. The team has been downplaying the ethnic-signifier aspect of “Eskimos” for decades: it doesn’t even need to change helmets as long as the new nickname starts with an E.

Stationery isn’t that expensive. And goodwill counts too: it is real enough to businesses to appear on balance sheets. I will miss my familiar Edmonton Eskimos, and I don’t know what we’ll do about the fight song, but I am ready.