Obama Admin Blocks New D.C. Stadium Until Redskins Change Name

The Obama administration has said it will not allow the proposed construction of an NFL stadium in Washington, D.C., unless the Washington Redskins change their name.

The Redskins were hoping to set up shop in a tract of land near the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, where the soccer team D.C. United play. But the land is owned by the Park Service, and would require the Interior Secretary’s permission in order to sell. But The Washington Post reports that Interior Secretary Sally Jewell told D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser that they wouldn’t accommodate construction of a new stadium unless the Redskins change their name.

The Interior Secretary also oversees the Bureau of Indian Affairs. “Personally, I think we would never consider naming a team the ‘Blackskins’ or the ‘Brownskins’ or the ‘Whiteskins,'” Jewell told ABC News last year. “So, personally, I find it surprising that in this day and age, the name is not different.”

[Image via Shutterstock.com]
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