Elvis Presley’s Granddaughter Riley Keough Calls out Washington Redskins’ Racist Name

Riley Keough voiced support for the movement to finally get the Washington Redskins to change their name. The Washington NFL team has had the name since 1933, and there have been demands the team changes the name for decades. Earlier this week, the ream removed all mentions of the franchise’s original owner, George Preston Marshall, who chose the name and resisted signing Black players until 1962, from the team’s stadium in Landover, Maryland.

Keough, the daughter of Lisa Marie Presley and granddaughter of Elvis Presley, shared an illustration with the Redskins logo covered by the phrase “Change It.” In the caption, Keough wrote that the name “cannot be tolerated any longer” and it must be changed. “It’s racist and unacceptable, our indigenous brothers and sisters deserve much better,” Keough wrote, adding the hashtag, “The time is now.” Keough also tagged the Instagram user who made the illustration, IllumiNatives, a non-profit initiative founded by Native Americans.

The team has chosen to remove Marshall’s name from the Ring of Fame in FedEx Field, the team’s stadium reports the New York Times. The team also removed Marshall from the “history wall” at its Ashburn, Virginia training facility, and deleted him “from all aspects of our website,” a team spokesman told the Times. The lower bowl in FedEx Field will be renamed for Bobby Mitchell, the first Black player for the team. A memorial for Marshall was also removed outside Washington’s former home, RFK Stadium.

The ongoing protests against police brutality and systemic racism have sparked a re-evaluation of statues, monuments, and symbols, including those in the sports world. Even before the protests, there was a movement to remove offensive Native American names and logos, like the Cleveland Indians’ decision to stop using the Chief Wahoo logo in 2018. However, Washington owner Dan Snyder has long refused to ever change the team’s name. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, who recently issued a video announcing the league would listen to Black players protesting racial injustice, has defended Snyder in the past.

This month, Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said the time for Snyder to change the name has already past. “I think it’s past time for the team to deal with what offends so many people,” Bowser said in an interview on The Team 980. “This is a great franchise with a great history that is beloved in Washington and it deserves a name that is a reflection of how we feel about the team.”