I am pleased to send to you the attached letter from Rev. Timothy Tutt and the Westmoreland Congregational United Church of Christ asking the council to pass a resolution urging Mr. Snyder to change the name of the professional Washington football team.
The letter states in part:
"In June 2014, the Central Atlantic Conference of the United Church Of Christ called upon the Washington Football League team to cease using the racially demeaning name of “Redskins,” its associated mascot, and its affiliated imagery. This resolution will allow the United Church of Christ once again — through its General Synod — to demonstrate it’s progressive leadership on social issues through its participation in the vanguard of a burgeoning national movement to end a significant signal of racial discrimination in our nation’s very capital."
"Persecution against all religions have been aided and abetted by the use of stereotypes and name calling. It is with this perspective that we call on Mr. Snyder to change the name of the team. We are all made in the image of God and each of us deserves dignity and respect. Please pass a resolution asking Mr. Snyder to change the name of his team."
This is the second recent letter from a religious institution based in Montgomery County. I have also shared with you a letter from the Bethesda Jewish Congregation, which can be found here along with statements against the name from other prominent religious and civil rights organizations. Now that a significant portion of your constituency have spoken eloquently with faith and conviction for changing the name, we hope you can expeditiously pass the resolution. County Executive Elrich has stated to Rebrand Washington Football that he intends to introduce a resolution.
We stand ready to work with you in this important issue.
Sincerely,
Josh Silver
Co-Founder
westmoreland_ucc_county_council_rdskins_letter.pdf |