Reporter Mike Wise Documents Sunday’s Protest Over Washington Redskins’ Name

Hundreds of protestors stood outside of FedEx Field for what is reportedly the largest Native American rally thus far, according to future ESPN analyst Mike Wise. The protest, which was organized through Facebook, is in response to team owner Dan Snyder’s refusal to change the name Redskins.

“It’s just historical truths, and I’d like them to understand, as I think most do, that the name really means honor, respect… A Redskin is a football player. A Redskin is our fans. The Washington Redskins fan base represents honor, represents respect, represents pride. Hopefully winning. And, and, it, it’s a positive. Taken out of context, you can take things out of context all over the place. But in this particular case, it is what it is. It’s very obvious,” Snyder said in an August interview with ESPN.

However, to the protestors, who peacefully held signs and handed out pamphlets, the term emphasizes deep-seeded racism in this country. As many of Mike Wise’s tweets pointed out, when you have men, women and children dissenting over a decision, it does not look good for the organization.

Especially when you have drunk fans yelling and cursing at the protestors: highlight for worst caught on camera moment of the year, this fan who flipped off “a 6-year-old Navajo child named Justice, his mother and aunt.”

Needless to say, things on both sides got a little heated: with Wise saying their were some nasty exchanges. Luckily, no reported fights broke out and the largest protest outside FedEx Field went off without a hitch.

Notable celebrity Dick Gregory even joined in on the protest: according to Wise, this is “his second Native American protest against the Washington name in [the last] two months.”

Article by Anthony Falco