The Washington Redskins announced Monday that they will drop the team’s longtime name and Indian head logo immediately, bowing to decades of criticism that they are offensive to Native Americans.
— Washington Redskins (@Redskins) July 13, 2020
A new name must still be selected for one of the oldest and most storied teams in the National Football League, and it was unclear how soon that will happen.
The move came less than two weeks after owner Dan Snyder, a boyhood fan of the team who once declared he would never get rid of the name, launched a “thorough review” amid pressure from sponsors and Democratic politicians in the District of Columbia.
FedEx, Nike, Pepsi and Bank of America all lined up against the name, which was given to the franchise in 1933 when the team was still based in Boston.
The team said it is “retiring” the name and logo and that Snyder and coach Ron Rivera are working closely to develop a new name and design.
Activists have long criticized the name as a “dictionary-defined racial slur,” although polling of Native Americans has found a majority don’t find the team’s name offensive.
Over a dozen Native leaders and organizations wrote to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell last week demanding an immediate end to Washington’s use of the name. Goodell, who has fielded questions on the topic for years, said he supported the review.