Redskins’ Attempt to Twitter Troll Harry Reid Backfires Spectacularly

The Washington Redskins organization is currently enmeshed in a battle against a group of U.S. senators, led by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), who have demanded that the team change its name from what they have deemed a “racial slur.” This week, the Redskins decided to try to mobilize its social media audience to tell Reid that they are not willing to let go of their #RedskinsPride. But, as often happens with hashtag campaigns like this one, the whole thing massively backfired.

It all started with this tweet from the Redskins Thursday afternoon:

Tweet @SenatorReid to show your #RedskinsPride and tell him what the team means to you.

— Washington Redskins (@Redskins) May 29, 2014

Quickly, activists like this one started urging Twitter users to turn the hashtag against the team:

Tweet @Redskins to show ur disgust at the #RedskinsPride hashtag & tell them what Native American genocide means to u pic.twitter.com/JvafPgMKzB

— Rania Khalek (@RaniaKhalek) May 29, 2014

Below are some of the best (or worst) responses, depending on how you look at it.

Dan Snyder is a scumbag. Happy? RT @Redskins: Tweet @SenatorReid to show your #RedskinsPride and tell him what the team means to you.

— daveweigel (@daveweigel) May 29, 2014

A racist name and a dipshit owner RT @Redskins: Tweet @SenatorReid to show your #RedskinsPride and tell him what the team means to you.

— Andrew Beaujon (@abeaujon) May 29, 2014

.@Redskins @SenatorReid Hitler studied American Indian reservations while designing German concentration camps. #RedskinsPride!

— rob delaney (@robdelaney) May 29, 2014

Is KOCH BROTHERS the right answer? RT @Redskins: Tweet @SenatorReid to show your #RedskinsPride and tell him what the team means to you.

— Chris Moody (@moody) May 29, 2014

#RacialSlurPride RT @Redskins: Tweet @SenatorReid to show your #RedskinsPride and tell him what the team means to you.

— Jamil Smith (@JamilSmith) May 29, 2014

Dan Snyder should be pushed into traffic MT @Redskins: Tweet @SenatorReid to show #RedskinsPride and tell him what the team means to you

— john r stanton (@dcbigjohn) May 29, 2014

.@Redskins boy, good thing the systematic slaughter of indigenous people was managed better than this twitter account! #redskinspride

— steve coy (@stevecoy) May 29, 2014

Racism. #RedskinsPride @redskins @senatorreid

— Matt Binder (@MattBinder) May 29, 2014

Admittedly, there were some fans who followed the team’s directive and went after Reid, mostly for ignoring other, more important national issues:

#RedskinsPride @SenatorReid Stop this Redskins drama get to work. Fix Obamacare, the VA, and IRS before wasting time on the Redskins name

— Joe Swick (@joeswick) May 29, 2014

#RedskinsPride @SenatorReid Leave the Redskins name alone. Worry about running the United States it is none of your business!

— Clap4mee (@Clap4mee) May 29, 2014

#RedskinsPride @SenatorReid Does the Senate not have anything else to worry about ?

— Andrew Moore (@admoore711) May 29, 2014

But as for Senator Reid himself, his digital director Faiz Shakir told Deadspin they were surprised at just how terribly the campaign went for the team. “The Skins tried to engage folks, and it has failed miserably,” Shakir said. In the immediate aftermath of the first tweet going out, he added, “We haven’t found more than one or two that are actually supportive.”

On a possibly related note, the Washington Redskins organization is currently hiring a new social media intern.

[h/t Washingtonian]
[Photo via screengrab]

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