Resolves of the Executive Council

Resolved, That the Executive Council of The Episcopal Church, meeting in Linthicum Heights, MD, from February 5-7, 2014, calls the church’s members to remember their commitment to the Baptismal Covenant, which states that we will strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being; and be it further

Resolved, That the Executive Council affirms the various General Convention and Executive Council anti-racism resolutions of the past several decades, the House of Bishops pastoral letters of March 1994 and March 22, 2006, that have declared that racism is a sin from which the church and its members should repent, and Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori’s pastoral letter of May 16, 2012, on the Doctrine of Discovery and Indigenous Peoples; and be it further

Resolved, That the Executive Council affirms and declares its solidarity with the following resolution, including its “Whereas” clauses as being educational opportunities for the wider church and community, as adopted on December 12, 2013, by The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights of which The Episcopal Church is a member:

WHEREAS, similarly, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has instituted and enforced a policy that has penalized collegiate athletic programs that use pejorative or disparaging team names, images, mascots, and behaviors, a policy that has promoted respect for Native American tribes and peoples without detrimentally affecting the success of any athletic teams or programs that have changed their names or other forms of branding; and

WHEREAS, the term “redskin,” when used in reference to Native American cultures and people, has a history of use as a pejorative and insulting name; one that is and has been defined by numerous dictionaries as an offensive racial, ethnic slur; one that is widely considered to be just as offensive and demeaning as historically-used slurs that are no longer deemed acceptable when used in reference to groups and individuals in African-American, LGBT, physical or developmental disability, Jewish, Italian-American, or other communities; and one that cannot in any reasonable way be viewed as honoring the culture or historical legacy of any particular Native American tribe or individual;

WHEREAS, the fact that the private or commercial use of athletic team names, images, mascots, and behaviors is protected by the rights guaranteed under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, and similar state and local protections of the right of free expression, does not make the use of offensive or demeaning names, images, mascots, and behaviors any less harmful and inappropriate, and does not require local, state, or federal government entities to be complicit in or supportive of their use;

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights calls upon the National Football League’s Washington Redskins franchise to change its team name, and to refrain from the use of any other images, mascots, or behaviors that are or could be deemed harmful or demeaning to Native American cultures or peoples; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights calls upon the District of Columbia, the State of Maryland, and other local, state, and federal government entities to take any and all appropriate measures, while taking special care to avoid infringing any of the freedoms of speech or association guaranteed by the First Amendment and the U.S. Constitution and similar local and state protections, to disassociate themselves from the Washington Redskins franchise and to end any preferential tax, zoning, or other policy treatment that could be viewed as supporting the franchise as long as it retains its current team name; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights commends the current and former government officials, media outlets, and other entities that have encouraged the Washington Redskins franchise to change its team name or that have refused to be complicit in promoting the current team name; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights calls upon other sports teams to eradicate the use of team names, images, mascots, and behaviors that are or could be deemed harmful or demeaning to Native American cultures or peoples.

and be it further

Resolved, That the Executive Council also calls on other professional sports leagues and college and high school organizations to endorse the policy instituted and enforced by the NCAA in regard to so-called “Native” names that promote negative stereotypes; and be it further

Resolved, That the Executive Council calls on the National Football League (NFL) to endorse the policy instituted and enforced by the NCAA in regard to so-called “Native” names that promote negative stereotypes, and not to allow a major football event like the Super Bowl to occur in Washington; and be it further

Resolved, That the Executive Council encourages local churches and dioceses to engage the issue of pejorative or disparaging team names in their local contexts when such occurrences exist within their local schools and community sports teams; and be it further

Resolved, That the Executive Council renews a call to Episcopal church clergy and lay leaders participate in anti-racism training as a fundamental aspect of their ongoing Christian formation.