Trump calls for name reversals of NFL's Commanders, baseball's Guardians
But Trump on Sunday characterized the changes as erasing the identity of Native Americans, saying: 'Our great Indian people, in massive numbers,' want teams to keep the original names despite the pushback.
'Their heritage and prestige is systematically being taken away from them,' Trump wrote. 'Times are different now than they were three or four years ago. We are a Country of passion and common sense. OWNERS, GET IT DONE!!!'
Trump has previously voiced his disapproval for the Commanders' name change.
Earlier this year, the president was asked if he would require the NFL team to restore its former name if a deal to bring the franchise, which now plays in Virginia, back to Washington was reached.
At the time, Trump said the name change was 'degrading to the Indian population.'
'I can tell you that I spoke to people of Indian heritage who love that name and love that team, and I think it's a much superior name to what they have right now and it had heritage behind it, it had something special,' he said.
The NFL did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Washington football team was founded in Boston in 1932. Originally called the Boston Braves, the team changed its name to the Boston Redskins in 1933 and moved to Washington in 1937. The franchise, under the ownership of George Preston Marshall, was the last team in the NFL to integrate, doing so in 1962 only after threats by the Kennedy administration.
The team briefly went by the Washington Football Team in 2020 before it officially changed its name once more in 2022 following years of criticism from Native Americans and advocacy groups that said the former name was offensive.
Though the Commanders' name was originally met with derision, the name has appeared to grow on fans.
A 2024 Washington Post poll found that only 36 percent of Commanders fans said they liked or loved the name —but as of May this year, 62 percent say they like or love the name. The change followed the team's most successful season in decades.
Regardless of public opinion, Washington Commanders controlling owner Josh Harris in February said the team would not be changing its name again.
'I think it's now being embraced by our team, by our culture, by our coaching staff, so, we're going with that,' Harris said. 'Now, in this building, the name Commanders means something. It's about players who love football, are great at football, hit hard, mentally tough, great teammates. It's really meaningful that that name is growing in meaning.'
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