Sports and Race in Washington, DC

Sports and Race in Washington, DC

In 1947, Jackie Robinson broke Major League baseball’s color barrier. He went on to become a symbol of positive change in the United States, an early indicator of the impending civil rights movement. During the 1940s, ‘50s, and ‘60s African-Americans were gradually hired into each of the major professional sports leagues. In fact, the sports arena was one of the first places where blacks were accepted on a national scale. However, not all professional sports teams welcomed black athletes with open arms. Unfortunately, segregation in professional sports occurred right here in the District long after Jackie Robinson played his first game for the Dodgers.

The National Football League’s Washington Redskins, who played their home games in the District of Columbia, were still segregated in 1961. Not only were the Redskins still segregated, they were the only team in the NFL who had not yet signed a black player. The owner of the Redskins, George Preston Marshall, was a pompous racist, unwilling to curb his prejudices. Marshall’s only concerns were making money and staying loyal to stodgy and bigoted politicians in power at the time. Marshall paralleled the governmental institutions of the early 1960s. He conducted business and made money at the expense of African-Americans and ignored their needs, just as the government often ignored the needs of African-Americans of Washington.

In fact, the Redskins’ target audience until the mid-sixties was primarily not Washington, DC, but the south. America’s south, like the District of Columbia, had a large African-American population that had been abused for hundreds of years with the institutions of slavery, and segregation. African-Ameri...

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... though unintentionally, the move will be in the direction of a constituency they cultivated for a good deal of their existence” (Denlinger M4). The “constituency” that Denlinger is speaking of is the south. For years, Marshall marketed his team to a white southern audience with radio and television contracts. At the time of Marshall’s ownership the south was an area of the United States that was home to rampant racism. To George Marshall, the southern audience was key; it seemed to enjoy the all white Redskins in the 1950s, and supported the team. Building the team a stadium outside of the city would simply bring the team back into the shadow of George Marshall. Marshall catered to a southern audience during his time as owner, just as Cooke wished to cater to suburbanites with his stadium plan. In both cases, the fan base of the District appears to be ignored.