[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 81 (Wednesday, May 28, 2014)]
[House]
[Pages H4841-H4842]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1215
   DENOUNCING THE NAME OF THE NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE'S WASHINGTON 
                           FOOTBALL FRANCHISE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
American Samoa (Mr. Faleomavaega) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, last year, nine Members of this House 
and I sent a letter to the National Football League Commissioner Roger 
Goodell, to the Washington, D.C., franchise owner, Dan Snyder, and to 
the owners of the other 31 National Football League franchises urging 
an end to the use of the term ``redskins'' as an NFL franchise name 
because it is derogatory, it is demeaning, and patently offensive to 
Native American Indians. While Mr. Snyder did not respond, Mr. Goodell 
did so in a dismissive manner, calling this racial slur ``a unifying 
force that stands for strength, courage, pride, and respect.''
  Mr. Speaker, give me a break.
  Last week, 50 Senators joined our effort and also sent a letter to 
the NFL. Mr. Goodell did not respond, but Bruce Allen of the Washington 
franchise did respond in a dismissive manner, stating that ``redskins'' 
is not a derogatory word and claiming that it actually honors Native 
Americans.
  Mr. Speaker, shame on Mr. Allen, shame on Mr. Goodell, and shame on 
Mr. Snyder for suggesting that ``redskins'' is a name of honor when, 
according to Native Americans, it is ``the worst thing in the English 
language you can be called if you are a Native person.''
  Mr. Snyder, Mr. Goodell, and Mr. Allen have escaped the public 
lashing that Don Sterling received just weeks ago for his racist 
remarks on African Americans who play basketball. I believe if the 
American public knew the history of this derogatory term, they would 
call on Dan Snyder to change the name or get out of the League.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to share with my colleagues the painful and 
violent past associated with this despicable term. For many of our 
Native Americans, the word ``redskins'' is reminiscent of a time when 
the colonial government engaged in the practice of trading Indian 
scalps or skins and body parts for bounties.
  In 1749, the British bounty was ``10 guineas for every Indian taken 
or killed.'' In 1755, the lieutenant governor of the Massachusetts Bay 
Province issued a proclamation calling for the extermination of the 
Penobscot Indian Nation. The bounty for a male Indian above the age of 
12 was 50 pounds,

[[Page H4842]]

and his scalp was worth 40 pounds. The bounty for a female Indian of 
any age and for males under the age of 12 was 25 pounds, while their 
scalps were worth 20 pounds. In 1863, the reward in Minnesota was $200 
``for every redskin sent to purgatory.''
  Mr. Speaker, I submit that today, Chief Kirk Francis of the Penobscot 
Indian Nation declared that the word ``redskins'' is ``not just a 
racial slur or a derogatory term,'' but a painful ``reminder of one of 
the most gruesome acts of ethnic cleansing ever committed against'' his 
people. The hunting and killing of Native American Indians, as stated 
by Chief Francis, was ``a most despicable and disgraceful act of 
genocide.'' This photo depicts what genocide looks like, Mr. Speaker, 
and I want to share this photo with my colleagues.
  So, while scalping is a matter of historical debate, Mr. Snyder's 
response to this disgraceful act is indicative of the racist history 
behind the Washington franchise's name. Its founder, George Preston 
Marshall, is identified by historians as the driving force behind the 
color barrier that existed for 12 years in the National Football 
League, a sad commentary or chapter from 1934 to 1945, when African 
Americans were banned from the National Football League by a so-called 
``gentleman's agreement.'' For years, Mr. Marshall marketed the 
Washington, D.C., franchise to appeal to the segregated South. The band 
played ``Dixie,'' the Confederate flag flew, and after the NFL's color 
line was crossed in 1946, the Washington, D.C., franchise was the last 
team to field an African American player--and not until 1962.
  I might add, Mr. Speaker, that the Washington team did not welcome 
African American players with open arms. Oh, no. Then-Secretary of the 
Interior Stewart Udall and Attorney General Robert Kennedy presented 
the Washington franchise with an ultimatum: unless Marshall signed an 
African American player, the government would revoke his franchise's 
30-year lease on the use of the D.C. stadium.
  Mr. Speaker, we cannot simply continue these hateful traditions that 
mock, belittle, disparage, and disgrace those of a different race 
because of the color of their skin. The National Basketball Association 
recently reacted swiftly to Mr. Don Sterling's racist remarks. Why is 
the National Football League so hesitant? Why is Mr. Snyder so slow to 
do the right thing when some 6 million of his own people's skins were 
used for lampshades by the Nazi Germans during World War II? Shame on 
Mr. Snyder for perpetuating this racism and bigotry. He should know 
better and do better.

                          ____________________