The Washington Commanders unveiled a revised logo on Wednesday that has ignited immediate backlash from Native American communities. The new design features a spear running through its emblem, seemingly echoing the team’s previous branding under the Redskins name.
In social media posts, the franchise described the updated mark as “a powerful joining of past and present,” with the spear and “W” interwoven to symbolize “the forward-focused spirit of the Commander, a leader of warriors.”
The Association on American Indian Affairs condemned the change, stating: “It is time to stop repeating this cycle and listen to Native Peoples who have been clear, consistent, and unwavering on this issue: We are not your mascot.” The group labeled the decision “disappointing and inappropriate.”
Similarly, the National Congress of American Indians criticized the logo, asserting that any tribute to a harmful past—even if it appears benign—carries “an insidious message” and is therefore damaging.
Thomas White Calf, who noted his late uncle Two Guns White Calf was the namesake for the former logo, argued that restoring the original imagery would honor Native American heritage. “Cancel-culture racists decided at some point they wanted to get rid of Indian images in the public domain. The Redskins and Two Guns were their No. 1 target,” he stated.
Indigenous scholar Marcus Briggs-Cloud countered that the design “harks back to European contrived imaginaries of the noble savage that reduce Indigenous Peoples to identities rooted in violence.”
The NFL draft begins on Thursday, as the team prepares for its next season kickoff on September 9.
