Good Seats Still Available

Columbia College Chicago cultural studies professor Rich King (Redskins: Insult and Brand) joins the podcast this week to discuss the roots and long-simmering backstory of the Washington NFL football franchise's problematic - and now former - nickname. Investigative reporter Tisha Thompson framed the situation in her recent piece for ESPN: “Daniel Snyder endured decades of protests, lawsuits and emotional appeals over the nickname of his Washington NFL team. ‘We'll never change the name,’ he told USA Today in 2013. ‘It's that simple. NEVER -- you can use caps.’ “Then, in a blinding rush this summer, the name long criticized by Native Americans and others was gone. “But the change didn't feel sudden to the coalition of Native American groups that started working long ago to force Snyder's hand by investing in the corporations that pay hundreds of millions of dollars for sponsorship deals.” Amplified by a renewed national furor over racial injustice sparked by the death of George Floyd - and opportunely re