The ties and ugliness to George Preston Marshall came down Friday when the monument of the former Washington team owner was removed.
In a statement released by Events D.C., the government said Marshall’s racism — which included keeping his team segregated well after the rest of the NFL had integrated — made him unfit for such a memorial.
“This morning, Events DC removed the George Preston Marshall memorial statue that stood out front of RFK Stadium,” the statement said. “This symbol of a person who didn’t believe all men and women were created equal and who actually worked against integration is counter to all that we as people, a city, and nation represent. We believe that injustice and inequality of all forms is reprehensible and we are firmly committed to confronting unequal treatment and working together toward healing our city and country.
“Removing this statue is a small and an overdue step on the road to lasting equality and justice. We recognize that we can do better and act now. We’ve heard from many of our stakeholders in the community, and we thank you. Allowing the memorial to remain on the RFK Campus goes against Events DC’s values of inclusion and equality and is a disturbing symbol to many in the city we serve.”
The Redskins did not comment on the removal of Marshall’s statue, citing the fact that RFK is no longer under their control. Owner Dan Snyder gave all his employees the day off Friday in honor of Juneteenth.
Marshall owned the franchise from its inception in 1932 until his death in 1969. The team began in Boston as the Braves in 1932 and was renamed the Redskins a year later when it shared Fenway Park with the Red Sox. Marshall moved the franchise to his hometown of Washington, D.C., in 1937.
ESPN summed up Marshall:
Marshall once said he would sign African American players once the Harlem Globetrotters signed white players. The Redskins were the southernmost franchise, and Marshall would have their marching band play “Dixie” on the field for 23 years. The NAACP protested against Marshall at a meeting of league owners in 1957 and once picketed outside his home.
In the spring of 1961, Interior Secretary Stewart Udall started to apply pressure on Marshall to integrate his roster. Because the Redskins were going to begin play at D.C. Stadium on federally owned land that fall, Udall told Marshall that a 30-year lease would be revoked unless he added a black player. NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle later got involved in trying to persuade Marshall to relent. That December, Marshall drafted black running back and Heisman Trophy winner Ernie Davis with the first pick.
However, it was later learned that Marshall had traded the selection to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for running back/wide receiver Bobby Mitchell, who became Washington’s first black player in 1962.
