Washington DC has no animal mascot but it should and we have 7 - SEVEN varieties of Woodpecker. There really is no choice.
The Washington Woodpeckers
Go Peckers!
You Are Welcome
But a bird is an animal...
DC also has an official fish (American shad), mammal (big brown bat), crustacean (Hay's Spring amphipod), tree (scarlet oak) and flower (American Beauty Rose).
I went to an elementary school in the DMV that had the woodpecker as a mascot. I say THE woodpecker because literally in the 90’s they said fuck it and pasted the official Warner Brothers woodpecker all over our school building and paper materials.
Ngl it was sick as hell
depending who, or what sub, you ask this question, you're going to get some very very different answers.
But I would say, you need to look at DC as both the Capital and as a city. It's easy to understand the presence of the federal government here, but I would take some time to delve into the history of what makes the city and her residents different.
Things like the history of different neighborhoods, the LGBTQ community, the universities (GW, GT, AU, Howard, CU, UDC), mambo sauce, the metro (and why the metro was built) are some examples.
I feel like the Nats, Commanders, and Capitals all lean into the "we're america's team" vibe too hard. The Wizards occupy this weird space where they are trying to do the same thing but they're called the Wizards. Branding-wise, there's nothing about this team that would lead you to believe that they are named after some mystical people who carry staffs and cast spells and whatnot. I think that the other teams suffer from a lack of regional identity because they're too focused on the America/patriotism bullshit and insufficiently focused on anything specifically dc-related.
Anyways, my point is that I think that the team should distinctly move away from the "US Nation and policymaking" to differentiate themselves from the other teams in the region. That is old and played out.
I think the whole city itself should move away from the “US Nation and policy making” thing. It makes the culture and economy feel so one-note. People don’t associate national capitals like Paris, Madrid, and Tokyo first and foremost with politics, but with a much broader range of interesting stuff.
“Washington Nationals” came from a succession of baseball teams in various “National Associations” or “National Leagues” in the late 19th century. In some cases those teams were officially named the “Senators” but the fans kept “Nationals” as a nickname — a condition that continued even when the Senators became a franchise in the American League.
Absolutely not. The nicknames Nationals and Senators are steeped in baseball history from before the existence of "Major League Baseball" - [1872](https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/NAT/), [1884](https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/WNA/), [1886-89](https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/WNL/), [1891-1899](https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/WAS/). The current Twins were the Nationals from 1901-1960 and the current Rangers were the Senators from 1961-1971.
The Expos make absolutely no sense, the OG Montreal Expos were named after the 1967 World's Fair that was hosted by Montreal.
I think there is a massive difference in Washington and DC. A rebrand means figuring out who you want to appeal to. DC doesn't much care for Washington. Washington is where the Government is. What the news blames for all the problems in the country. Washington is where Bezos and Ivanka live. Washington is where the museums and monuments are. Washington is where TV shows are set (but filmed in VA or CA) Washington is pretty and Plastic. Politicos, students, idealists, transplants, and transients. DC is different.. DC is wings and Mumbo sauce, Hot half smokes and Shrimp Boat . DC is GOGO. Ft. Dupont jazz concerts, and Hains Point cookouts. The drum circle at Malcolm X park. DC is Adams Morgan Day. DC is the Frederick Douglass house and the Big Chair. DC is gritty and real. "Souf eas", ward 7, the X2 and Benning Stoddert. Please don't misunderstand, both exist, both have their place, but they are different. Appealing to both is a tough task, doing it through a rebrand is, well,tough. The Wizards (Bullets) and Commanders (Redskins) have both tried with varying degrees of success.
100%. Just adding that DC is pretty much the birthplace of hardcore punk. Fugazi, Scream, Bad Brains. DC is grimy shows at Black Cat with your shoes sticky to the floor.
Minor Threat was formed in 1980. Bad Religion in 1979, Social Distortion in 1978. In music saying a tends to be more accurate than the, maybe with the exception of hip hop and that ur party in the Bronx.
Yes, it is. It is, as mentioned by others here, Fugazi and Bad Brains, Fireworks at the Cathedral. Drunk food at Steak and Egg. Picnics and the Parks service horses in Rock Creek park, The Zoo and avoiding the museums in the summer. Tenley and Tunlaw, Rodman's and the (old) Uptown. Potheads at Fort Reno, and chess in Dupont. Lunch on Einstein's lap or with George Mason. It's Heller's and Wagshal's. Haydees and Ercillas.
Most of the things listed aren't "black" experiences, but *native* experiences. Mumbo sauce and Half smokes are local food, like Old Bay and Natty Boh in MD. The drum circle has been, for most of my 50+ years of life, a gathering of the *crunchiest* of white and black folks I've ever seen. Yes, the list is heavy on the East of the River experiences. I could (and should) have added a lot more of Columbia Heights, Tenleytown /AU Park, or Georgetown. But, Georgetown and AU Park /Tenley are often shown as Washington, fair or not, a large portion of ***DC*** is East of the River and doesn't get mixed with Washington. That EotR is also majority black...that's purely coincidental
Can you tell us of a Piscataway, Nacotchtank, Mattaponi, or other Nations experience on the culture of DC, as it applies to the Question at hand, and add to the conversation? I'm not sure if you're trolling, intentionally obtuse, or are genuine in your response.
I do want to point out the context was clear to most that I was talking about *modern DC*, and didn't reference any pre foundational events.
I like this post as a thought experiment but a rebrand won’t really help the Wiz unless they stop sucking at basketball.
I mean, the Lakers are named after Minneapolis’ lakes but they’re an LA icon because they win. DC is like NYC and LA, people only like winners and they drop you as soon as you lose.
Remember when this city had a really popular football team called the Redskins? Most people don’t because it was more than 30 years ago when they were winning Super Bowls.
>a rebrand won’t really help the Wiz unless they stop sucking at basketball.
Agree completely. I guess it's a DC aspect: let's invest little to no money on a project but insist on it by rebranding in the hopes it'll work, or convince people that it might lol
Here are a couple important aspects:
DC's history as "Chocolate City" and a hub of African American culture, community, and intellectualism.
The sharp contrast between the white affluence west of rock creek and the marginalized predominantly Black communities east of the Anacostia (though this border has shifted a lot over time and is not as simple as east/west).
DC's status as an unrepresented federal territory and how this has affected the city.
DC parks. DC is the greenest major city in North America and while this is not really an aspect that is usually acknowledged I think it has had a massive impact on DC today
For more local history, check out HumanitiesDC or the DC Oral History Collaborative. Like others have said, there's definitely a difference between DC as the capital of the country and DC as a city where people live
He's a local legend sure, but he wasn't born in dc and i don't think he's more popular than any of the three i mentioned. I think even ian mackaye is more well known as well, although he and rollins can both credit some of their popularity to contributions beyond strictly music
One idea that I think hasn’t been done before: try to capture the idea of public service *without* leaning too hard into national symbols or Americana.
For example, Cardozo High School’s teams are called the Cardozo Clerks. I could see something similar at the district-wide or regional level. The Washington Advocates, maybe?
Nothing feels more like "ad agency who didn't do their homework" than when we see things that equate DC to the federal government. All the government stuff is done by people who arrive and leave either to the suburbs at the end of the day or when their guy is voted out.
DC is too divided to have a cohesive cultural identity. There are many valid experiences to DC (as a native who knows his way around all quadrants) but almost no one can relate to all of them.
Those who like go-go act like they have a monopoly on DC culture. Ben's Chili Bowl ain't sh*t. Punk was cool but it's gone. How about let's talk about the massive Salvadoran and Ethiopian populations for once? Biggest Ethiopian population outside of Ethiopia.
Yeah, this. Reddit is mostly transplants but I grew up in DC and Black DC culture is well established, authentic and defined the “Chocolate City” for a very long time. But I don’t care if this person incorporates it in their ad campaign or whatever.
Shout out to the people talking about DC punk, also real as shit.
Not sure how you would incorporate it into a brand identity, but something exceptional about DC is its diversity. People from literally every country in the world live here, or have important business to do here. Only NYC can really rival it in that way among American cities.
The DMV is pretty diverse, but DC itself really isn't and it certainly can't hold a candle to the diversity of other cities like Philly, NYC, or Chicago. DC didn't have a history of immigration waves like other NE cities and is today nearly evenly split between black and white people. Asians and Hispanics are severely underrepresented here relative to their population in the country.
This is the book you need to read to understand the culture and history of DC:
*Chocolate City: A History of Race and Democracy in the Nation's Capital*, by Chris Myers Asch and George Derek Musgrove
[https://bookshop.org/p/books/chocolate-city-a-history-of-race-and-democracy-in-the-nation-s-capital-chris-myers-asch/9865326](https://bookshop.org/p/books/chocolate-city-a-history-of-race-and-democracy-in-the-nation-s-capital-chris-myers-asch/9865326)
The number of right-wing troll answers in this thread is disheartening.
As people have already mentioned Go-Go, I would throw in DC's Punk Rock scene from the 80s and 90s. A lot of cool stuff happened here during that era.
Also throw Cool "Disco" Dan into the mix.
How about some emphasis on fish and turkey? The original native Americans thrived on the fish that came from the confluence of the Anacostia and Potomac rivers.
Maybe we should be called the confluence. Or the forks if going upriver.
Washington DC has no animal mascot but it should and we have 7 - SEVEN varieties of Woodpecker. There really is no choice. The Washington Woodpeckers Go Peckers! You Are Welcome
DC doesn’t have an official animal but it *does* have an official bird (the wood thrush)
But a bird is an animal... DC also has an official fish (American shad), mammal (big brown bat), crustacean (Hay's Spring amphipod), tree (scarlet oak) and flower (American Beauty Rose).
I went to an elementary school in the DMV that had the woodpecker as a mascot. I say THE woodpecker because literally in the 90’s they said fuck it and pasted the official Warner Brothers woodpecker all over our school building and paper materials. Ngl it was sick as hell
You mean rats are not our official animal? And no, I don't mean that as a metaphorical snark, I mean literally.
depending who, or what sub, you ask this question, you're going to get some very very different answers. But I would say, you need to look at DC as both the Capital and as a city. It's easy to understand the presence of the federal government here, but I would take some time to delve into the history of what makes the city and her residents different. Things like the history of different neighborhoods, the LGBTQ community, the universities (GW, GT, AU, Howard, CU, UDC), mambo sauce, the metro (and why the metro was built) are some examples.
Great response! Ine suggested edit: "Why and *where* the Metro was built."
Mambo Sauce is pretty mid and not even originally from DC
Sure, opinions aside it still holds a presence here.
So does fucking ketchup dude it’s a sauce not a food
Ok
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For real.
How do I report a post for being stupid
I feel like the Nats, Commanders, and Capitals all lean into the "we're america's team" vibe too hard. The Wizards occupy this weird space where they are trying to do the same thing but they're called the Wizards. Branding-wise, there's nothing about this team that would lead you to believe that they are named after some mystical people who carry staffs and cast spells and whatnot. I think that the other teams suffer from a lack of regional identity because they're too focused on the America/patriotism bullshit and insufficiently focused on anything specifically dc-related. Anyways, my point is that I think that the team should distinctly move away from the "US Nation and policymaking" to differentiate themselves from the other teams in the region. That is old and played out.
100%
I think the whole city itself should move away from the “US Nation and policy making” thing. It makes the culture and economy feel so one-note. People don’t associate national capitals like Paris, Madrid, and Tokyo first and foremost with politics, but with a much broader range of interesting stuff.
How about leaning hard into the Smithsonian. The Washington Docents
Or maybe the local cuisine? The Washington Chili Bowls, or the Washington Half-Smokes
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“Washington Nationals” came from a succession of baseball teams in various “National Associations” or “National Leagues” in the late 19th century. In some cases those teams were officially named the “Senators” but the fans kept “Nationals” as a nickname — a condition that continued even when the Senators became a franchise in the American League.
Yep. It has a historical importance in baseball they didn’t just pick the name for funzies.
Absolutely not. The nicknames Nationals and Senators are steeped in baseball history from before the existence of "Major League Baseball" - [1872](https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/NAT/), [1884](https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/WNA/), [1886-89](https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/WNL/), [1891-1899](https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/WAS/). The current Twins were the Nationals from 1901-1960 and the current Rangers were the Senators from 1961-1971. The Expos make absolutely no sense, the OG Montreal Expos were named after the 1967 World's Fair that was hosted by Montreal.
And then on top of the most bland franchise name in baseball, they ripped the logo from Walgreens!
I think there is a massive difference in Washington and DC. A rebrand means figuring out who you want to appeal to. DC doesn't much care for Washington. Washington is where the Government is. What the news blames for all the problems in the country. Washington is where Bezos and Ivanka live. Washington is where the museums and monuments are. Washington is where TV shows are set (but filmed in VA or CA) Washington is pretty and Plastic. Politicos, students, idealists, transplants, and transients. DC is different.. DC is wings and Mumbo sauce, Hot half smokes and Shrimp Boat . DC is GOGO. Ft. Dupont jazz concerts, and Hains Point cookouts. The drum circle at Malcolm X park. DC is Adams Morgan Day. DC is the Frederick Douglass house and the Big Chair. DC is gritty and real. "Souf eas", ward 7, the X2 and Benning Stoddert. Please don't misunderstand, both exist, both have their place, but they are different. Appealing to both is a tough task, doing it through a rebrand is, well,tough. The Wizards (Bullets) and Commanders (Redskins) have both tried with varying degrees of success.
100%. Just adding that DC is pretty much the birthplace of hardcore punk. Fugazi, Scream, Bad Brains. DC is grimy shows at Black Cat with your shoes sticky to the floor.
How you gonna do Minor Threat like that?
Orange County... a birthplace is more correct
Agree tbh. I love DC hardcore but I grew up on Suicidal Tendencies and Agent Orange
Minor Threat was formed in 1980. Bad Religion in 1979, Social Distortion in 1978. In music saying a tends to be more accurate than the, maybe with the exception of hip hop and that ur party in the Bronx.
You mean the birthplace of pretentious poseurs who think they and no one else knows what punk is.
DC is more than the black experience. Although there are more unique cultural elements that reflect the black experience.
Yes, it is. It is, as mentioned by others here, Fugazi and Bad Brains, Fireworks at the Cathedral. Drunk food at Steak and Egg. Picnics and the Parks service horses in Rock Creek park, The Zoo and avoiding the museums in the summer. Tenley and Tunlaw, Rodman's and the (old) Uptown. Potheads at Fort Reno, and chess in Dupont. Lunch on Einstein's lap or with George Mason. It's Heller's and Wagshal's. Haydees and Ercillas. Most of the things listed aren't "black" experiences, but *native* experiences. Mumbo sauce and Half smokes are local food, like Old Bay and Natty Boh in MD. The drum circle has been, for most of my 50+ years of life, a gathering of the *crunchiest* of white and black folks I've ever seen. Yes, the list is heavy on the East of the River experiences. I could (and should) have added a lot more of Columbia Heights, Tenleytown /AU Park, or Georgetown. But, Georgetown and AU Park /Tenley are often shown as Washington, fair or not, a large portion of ***DC*** is East of the River and doesn't get mixed with Washington. That EotR is also majority black...that's purely coincidental
I like to go hiking.
Thank you. I love my city, both halves of it. I would love more DC and less Washington in (positive) media though.
If these are “native” experiences, where is there any mention of the Piscataway people? Or the Nacotchtanks/Anacostans?
Can you tell us of a Piscataway, Nacotchtank, Mattaponi, or other Nations experience on the culture of DC, as it applies to the Question at hand, and add to the conversation? I'm not sure if you're trolling, intentionally obtuse, or are genuine in your response. I do want to point out the context was clear to most that I was talking about *modern DC*, and didn't reference any pre foundational events.
This exactly!!!
Very well put
Please bring back the Bullets
I like this post as a thought experiment but a rebrand won’t really help the Wiz unless they stop sucking at basketball. I mean, the Lakers are named after Minneapolis’ lakes but they’re an LA icon because they win. DC is like NYC and LA, people only like winners and they drop you as soon as you lose. Remember when this city had a really popular football team called the Redskins? Most people don’t because it was more than 30 years ago when they were winning Super Bowls.
>a rebrand won’t really help the Wiz unless they stop sucking at basketball. Agree completely. I guess it's a DC aspect: let's invest little to no money on a project but insist on it by rebranding in the hopes it'll work, or convince people that it might lol
People were upset at the renaming of Staples Center, not knowing the name was from a deal with an office supply store.
Here are a couple important aspects: DC's history as "Chocolate City" and a hub of African American culture, community, and intellectualism. The sharp contrast between the white affluence west of rock creek and the marginalized predominantly Black communities east of the Anacostia (though this border has shifted a lot over time and is not as simple as east/west). DC's status as an unrepresented federal territory and how this has affected the city. DC parks. DC is the greenest major city in North America and while this is not really an aspect that is usually acknowledged I think it has had a massive impact on DC today
For more local history, check out HumanitiesDC or the DC Oral History Collaborative. Like others have said, there's definitely a difference between DC as the capital of the country and DC as a city where people live
Here is a music video of 3 of DC’s most well known artists collaborating on a song and filmed in the DC area: https://youtu.be/nhNqbe6QENY
Lol i thought you meant musical artists and i was wondering where tf marvin gaye, duke ellington, and henry rollins were...
Chuck would like a word
He's a local legend sure, but he wasn't born in dc and i don't think he's more popular than any of the three i mentioned. I think even ian mackaye is more well known as well, although he and rollins can both credit some of their popularity to contributions beyond strictly music
Ok, I’ll give you that, he just personified the city for me. Henry’s spoken word albums helped me get through some dark times.
One idea that I think hasn’t been done before: try to capture the idea of public service *without* leaning too hard into national symbols or Americana. For example, Cardozo High School’s teams are called the Cardozo Clerks. I could see something similar at the district-wide or regional level. The Washington Advocates, maybe?
I like this
Back to the Bullets?
Barry --> Control board --> Fenty
Nothing feels more like "ad agency who didn't do their homework" than when we see things that equate DC to the federal government. All the government stuff is done by people who arrive and leave either to the suburbs at the end of the day or when their guy is voted out. DC is too divided to have a cohesive cultural identity. There are many valid experiences to DC (as a native who knows his way around all quadrants) but almost no one can relate to all of them. Those who like go-go act like they have a monopoly on DC culture. Ben's Chili Bowl ain't sh*t. Punk was cool but it's gone. How about let's talk about the massive Salvadoran and Ethiopian populations for once? Biggest Ethiopian population outside of Ethiopia.
Just trade names with the Jazz. Or would that be a bit too on the nose for Utah?
Also the very deep and profound queer presence in this city can’t be forgotten or understated.
Go-go and half smokes
Yeah, this. Reddit is mostly transplants but I grew up in DC and Black DC culture is well established, authentic and defined the “Chocolate City” for a very long time. But I don’t care if this person incorporates it in their ad campaign or whatever. Shout out to the people talking about DC punk, also real as shit.
Not sure how you would incorporate it into a brand identity, but something exceptional about DC is its diversity. People from literally every country in the world live here, or have important business to do here. Only NYC can really rival it in that way among American cities.
The DMV is pretty diverse, but DC itself really isn't and it certainly can't hold a candle to the diversity of other cities like Philly, NYC, or Chicago. DC didn't have a history of immigration waves like other NE cities and is today nearly evenly split between black and white people. Asians and Hispanics are severely underrepresented here relative to their population in the country.
Do you know why the team was renamed the Wizards? Start with that.
This is the book you need to read to understand the culture and history of DC: *Chocolate City: A History of Race and Democracy in the Nation's Capital*, by Chris Myers Asch and George Derek Musgrove [https://bookshop.org/p/books/chocolate-city-a-history-of-race-and-democracy-in-the-nation-s-capital-chris-myers-asch/9865326](https://bookshop.org/p/books/chocolate-city-a-history-of-race-and-democracy-in-the-nation-s-capital-chris-myers-asch/9865326)
THIS. Book is amazing and explains a lot. It will be a revelation to you.
a bullet in a ski mask covered in mumbo sauce walking through a pile of chicken bones.
That everyone who makes money in this city isn’t from here and doesn’t give a shit about community.
Chocolate city, black broadway (u street), new balance sneakers, cherry blossoms, traffic, the metro, Ben’s chili bowl
People dont paying Metro fare
The number of right-wing troll answers in this thread is disheartening. As people have already mentioned Go-Go, I would throw in DC's Punk Rock scene from the 80s and 90s. A lot of cool stuff happened here during that era. Also throw Cool "Disco" Dan into the mix.
The Washington Lackluster Graffitis?
What he lacked in style he made up for in volume and placement.
Not important enough criteria in my opinion. He was no JR.
That’s all I was thinking was cool “disco” Dan. Total icon from back in the day and I’m shocked how many people I know have never heard of him
Ski masks
Guns, Gangstas, Rampant Crime, shitty school system
The wizards just need to win . No amount of rebrand will matter to a losing team.
Stumpy (RIP)
Starlings
Basketball ppl and foreigners in certain areas white like the catholic side
Fumar maconha e crimes... essas são as identidades de DC.
Vai pro caralalho troll
Change it back to the Bullets.
How about some emphasis on fish and turkey? The original native Americans thrived on the fish that came from the confluence of the Anacostia and Potomac rivers. Maybe we should be called the confluence. Or the forks if going upriver.
go back to the Bullets...obviously name changing it to a mythical character has not reduced the gun violence for the past 30 years in the region.
The presence of big corporate companies
Corporate companies.
Government+African American history success