Washington Redskins Disown Team's Former Segregationist Owner

WASHINGTON, DC — The Washington Redskins said Wednesday they will remove George Preston Marshall's name from all official team material, including its Ring of Fame, History Wall and website. Marshall, the football team's founding owner, was the last NFL owner to integrate his team’s roster.

Marshall founded the team as the Boston Braves in 1932 but renamed it the Redskins shortly after to distinguish it from the baseball team in the city with the same name. He relocated the team to Washington in 1937.

Marshall specified in his will that none of the $6 million he left behind after his death in 1969 could be used to integrate schools. He signed the team's first Black player in 1962 — Bobby Mitchell — only because the federal government threatened to prevent him from playing in D.C. Stadium, now known as RFK Stadium, according to the Washington Post.

The team's decision to remove Marshall's name comes a week after city workers in the District of Columbia dismantled and removed a monument to Marshall from the grounds outside RFK Stadium. The removal of the monument to Marshall followed years of lobbying by residents who objected to honoring an owner who opposed desegregation.

Jordan Wright, Marshall's granddaughter, supported D.C.'s decision to remove the monument to her grandfather. “No, not at all — not one damn bit,” Wright told sportswriter Mike Wise. “I was glad to see it come down. It’s past time to see it go.”

In recent weeks, since the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis sparked protests against racial injustice across the country, the Redskins have created an internal Black Engagement Network for professional development and cultural understanding.

The franchise also announced the retirement of No. 49 to honor Bobby Mitchell, the Redskins’ first black player who died in April. The team renamed FedEx Field’s lower seating bowl from the George Preston Marshall Level to the Bobby Mitchell Level.

But Redskins owner Daniel Synder still has not announced plans to rename the team. For decades, Native Americans and others have called on the team to get rid of the Redskins name. D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser recently said the Redskins should change their name if they want to move back to the District.

“I think it’s past time for the team to deal with what offends so many people,” Bowser said in a recent radio interview. “And this is a great franchise with a great history that’s beloved in Washington. And it deserves a name that reflects the affection that we’ve built for the team.”

Snyder said in 2013 he would never change the name. Other members of the organization have reiterated that position in subsequent years.

Sportswriter and radio host Mike Florio wrote in an article published Wednesday that Snyder's current behavior has parallels to Marshall’s in the early 1960s. "To the extent Snyder’s team ever accomplishes anything that would potentially qualify him for placement in the Ring of Fame, Snyder’s current intransigence eventually will get him removed, too," Florio wrote.