Friday, Events DC removed the statue of former Redskins owner George Preston Marshall. It was a move long overdue. Marshall was a known racist, who refused to integrate the Redskins until he was forced by federal government in 1962.
Redskins running back Adrian Peterson told TMZ, “It makes me feel good” to see the statue taken down.
“Obviously, in different states all over this country, you’ve got monuments, buildings and stuff and statues that are named after people that owned slaves, people that were racists. It just shows that God is watching over us, to be able to get to a point now where they are removing some of these statues and trying to pave a new way.”
Marshall clung to his personal views blacks weren’t equal. He was also worried of upsetting his southern fan base for reasons not to integrate his team. The Redskins were the southern-most team in the NFL until 1960 when the Dallas Cowboys joined the league. For a time, the Redskins were the team of choice for fans in the South. Marshall was widely known as the “leading racist of the NFL.”
Many opposed his statue for years. Finally on Juneteenth, Events DC, who operates the Redskins’ former home RFK Stadium, had it removed.
Saturday, the Redskins announced the retirement of Bobby Mitchell’s jersey No. 49. Mitchell was the Redskins’ first Black player. He joined the team in 1962 after Marshall was forced to integrate. The team also removed Marshall’s name from the lower bowl section of their current playing home, FedEx Field, renaming it after Bobby Mitchell.
