The Washington Redskins are one of the most valuable franchises in all of sports and although the team has had the same name since its inception in the NFL, a campaign has been mounting over the past few years by Native Americans and other activists to get the team to change its name.
According to the Washington Post, D.C. Councilmember David Grosso, an independent that was elected last year, is planning on introducing a resolution for the Redskins franchise to change their name, suggesting a new one in the Washington Redtails instead. The council member said that he is working on the non-binding resolution due to the fact that Redskins is a "derogatory, racist name" and should be changed. Grosso has so far received support from two other council members and the resolution will bring more attention on the nickname situation, which has been in the news in recent months.
Mayor Vincent C. Gray brought up the issue earlier in the year when talking about the Redskins possibly moving back into the city one day (as they play in Landover) and the team has come under fire in recent years with the rise of social media and the main issue, while native Americans have been going at it for a number of years. At a Smithsonian panel earlier this year some fans who came to support the team on Redskins gear eventually left without it after hearing arguments against the team name when they heard testimony from Native Americans about what the name means and where it came from.
The team name has been the same for many years and has roots in racism, but the current ownership has not said much publicly and respects the tradition of the name in regard to the football franchise. The team is one of the most valuable in the world and the franchise has been unwilling to change the name in the past.
The resolution says that district residents should not have to deal with a name that is derogatory to another race or have to tolerate a name that "dishonors" the city of Washington. The resolution suggests another name in Redtails, as it is a nickname that was used by the the Tuskegee Airmen, that broke the color barrier for military pilots in WWII.
Grosso also added a new fight song for the team: "Hail . . . to the . . . Redtails."
