An American Indian tribe in New York will release radio advertisements pressuring the Washington Redskins to change the mascot, which is frequently deemed as offensive, the Huffington Post reported.
The Oneida Indian Nation announced that their first advertisement will play on Washington radio stations before the Redskins game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night. Ray Halbritter, a representative of Oneida Nation, says NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell should "stand up to bigotry" and denounce the "racial slur."
"We believe that with the help of our fellow professional football fans, we can get the NFL to realize the error of its ways and make a very simple change," Halbritter added.
A leader in the tribe also criticizes the mascot in the advertisement, saying "We do not deserve to be called redskins. We deserve to be treated as what we are - Americans."
The campaign also gives credit to Goodell for criticizing Eagles player Riley Cooper for using a racial slur against African Americans earlier this summer.
The Oneida ad campaign is not the first attempt at pressing the Redskins to change their name. In May, 10 members of Congress sent letters to the team's owner, Dan Snyder, and Goodell to change their mascot.
However, Snyder refuses to change it.
League spokesman Brian McCarthy said in an email that they "respect that reasonable people may have differing views."
"The name from its origin has always intended to be positive and has always been used by the team in a highly respectful manner," he continued in the email.
The Redskins have not commented on the radio campaign.
The Oneida tribe has been active in not only changing the name of the NFL mascot but also in teams at the high school level -- they rewarded one high school with $10,000 after they changed their name from the Redskins to the Hawkeyes.
On Thursday, the tribe announced their website dedicated to their campaign -- www.changethemascot.org.
