A monument to the former and first Washington Redskins owner George Preston Marshall was removed from the franchise's former home, RFK Stadium, on Friday.
Having been previously vandalized, the monument was removed by a construction crew and put in place by Events DC.
Events DC, which owns and manages RFK Stadium, along with Nationals Park and Walter E. Washington Convention Center, issued the following statement from chairman Max Brown and CEO Greg O'Dell:
"This morning, Events DC removed the George Preston Marshall memorial statue that stood out front of RFK Stadium. This symbol of a person who didn't believe all men and women were created equal and who actually worked against integration is counter to all that we as people, a city, and nation represent. We believe that injustice and inequality of all forms is reprehensible and we are firmly committed to confronting unequal treatment and working together toward healing our city and country.
"Removing this statue is a small and an overdue step on the road to lasting equality and justice. We recognize that we can do better and act now. We've heard from many of our stakeholders in the community, and we thank you. Allowing the memorial to remain on the RFK Campus goes against Events DC's values of inclusion and equality and is a disturbing symbol to many in the city we serve."
Marshall owned the Redskins upon their inception in 1932 until his death in 1969.
The Redskins did not sign a Black player to their roster -- Bobby Mitchell -- until 1962.
RFK Stadium was the team's home stadium from 1961 to 1996, before moving to its current home, FedEx Stadium (previously known as Jack Kent Cooke Stadium).
Marshall is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame (class of 1963) and the Redskins won two NFL championships (1937, 1942) while he owned the franchise.
