Harry Reid has declined an invitation to attend a Washington Redskins game until the team changes its name, which the Senate Majority Leader labeled a racial slur.
"I will not stand idly by while a professional sports team promotes a racial slur as a team name and disparages the American people. Nor will I consider your invitation to attend a home game until your organization chooses to do the right thing and change its offensive name," Reid wrote in a June 12 letter to
Washington Redskins President Bruce Allen, as published in The Washington Post.
The letter is the latest volley in the ongoing efforts to get the NFL team to change its name. In May, Reid endorsed a letter signed by about 50 members of the U.S. Senate to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell
seeking support for a name change, The New York Times reported.
According to Fox News, Allen defended the name in a response letter to Reid: "Our use of 'Redskins' as the name of our football team for more than 80 years has always been respectful of and shown reverence toward the proud legacy and traditions of Native Americans."
But Reid says the matter hits close to home.
"This is personal for me," he said in the June 12 letter. "I represent 27 tribes as the Senator from Nevada and have worked to protect their homelands and their sovereignty. I have a duty to ensure that the United States uphold centuries-old treaty and trust obligations towards Native Americans, and I take this responsibility very seriously."
Twitter users criticized Reid for his stance.
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