The Native American group advocating to have the Washington Commanders revert to their previous name has denied accusations that the group is “fake,” with the group’s president describing themselves as “tribal-enrolled members.”
The group’s denial of being phony comes after a sales manager for the Commanders, Matthew Laux, claimed the group was “fake” in a text message sent earlier this month. The manager had been discussing a petition created by the Native American Guardians Association, which is asking the team to readopt its title of the Washington Redskins, a name the team dropped in 2020.
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“We’re not a fake group,” Eunice Davidson, co-founder and president of NAGA, said in an interview. “We’re tribal-enrolled members from tribes across the United States.”
Davidson added that the attempt to change the team’s name was led by “racist white woke” college professors and that people have called the group “fake” in the past.
“They never tell our story, and that’s their goal,” Davidson said. “To wipe out Native history. It’s discrimination when you go after one culture like this.”
Even though the Washington Commanders’ sales manager did not believe that NAGA was a legitimate group, he said he was not a fan of the team’s decision to drop the “Redskins” name. A Commanders spokesperson issued a statement saying Laux does not speak for the organization.
The group’s petition was posted online in June, and as of Tuesday morning, it has over 128,000 signatures. When the petition reaches its next goal of 150,000 signatures, it will become one of the most signed petitions on Change.org.
NAGA has threatened the Commanders with a boycott in the same vein as “what happened with Anheuser-Busch” if the team does not revert to its original name. Anheuser-Busch, the owner of Bud Light and several other beer brands, reported a nearly $400 million loss in the second quarter of this year, which has been cited by many to be from a boycott of the company following a partnership Bud Light did with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney.
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In the letter, signed by Davidson, the group pointed to a poll that found 90% of Native Americans did not find the Redskins name offensive. The group also noted that other sports teams, including the Kansas City Chiefs and Chicago Blackhawks, have kept their Native American-inspired names while recognizing the names carry “an obligation of honor and respect.”
Last month, one of the Commanders’ co-owners, Earvin “Magic” Johnson, hinted that the team could change its name again, with the new name coming as soon as next year. It comes after billionaire Josh Harris purchased the Washington Commanders for over $6 billion earlier this year.
