The descendants of the Blackfeet chief who inspired the former Washington NFL team's logo are now fighting to restore the Redskins name and image that were removed in 2020.
Watch the full story below:
Chief Two Guns White Calf was born on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation and inspired the team's mascot. The logo was created in 1971 by Walter "Blackie" Wetzel to honor the chief.
"He was such a leader and he had a hold on the National Football League for 50 years," Morningstar Gopher said.
After Native American activist groups fought to have the Redskins name removed, deeming it a slur, the descendants of the chief in the logo are now fighting to get the logo and team name back. They say the logo brings a lot of pride, and they want him to be remembered, not erased.
The family can't get behind the 2020 removal of the name and logo that their grandfather inspired.
"They tried to erase us, like we didn't exist anymore," estate lead Kenneth Conway said.
The initial push to get the logo and the Redskins name removed from the NFL team was made by Native American activist groups. However, the descendants of the chief say their thoughts weren't even considered.
"They did not even ask our family for approval. They didn't ask for nothing from us. I mean, we literally got erased," historian Brock Conway said.
Now they're doing something about it. Estate representative Gopher decided to rally other direct descendants of the chief, like herself, to make the change they want to see.
"We're hopeful for a meeting with President Trump in order to help get this pushed forward," Gopher said.
Along with attorney Denise Rosado, the estate is shooting for the stars, hoping to restore the Redskins name, the logo of the chief, and get RFK Stadium renamed after their grandfather.
"It would be a big win in his pocket in terms of helping the Native people in securing the first ever NFL stadium named after a Native American," Gopher said.
The family says that restoration of their grandfather's image and name would be a huge win for everyone.
"There's a lot of diehard Redskins fans down in Washington, D.C.," Gopher said.
"This would be a win-win I think for everybody. It would be a win-win for the family because it would be so honored and the history of their ancestors," Rosado said.
The family hopes to have a seat with the team to discuss the importance of restoring the Redskins soon.
"We symbolize him with honor by you know putting his picture on our walls," Brock Conway said.
