Showdown: JFK and the Integration of the Washington Redskins

by Thomas G. Smith

In 1961—as America crackled with racial tension—the Washington Redskins stood alone as the only professional football team without a black player on its roster. In fact, during the entire twenty-five-year history of the franchise, no African American had ever played for George Preston Marshall, the Redskins’ cantankerous principal owner. With slicked-down white hair and angular facial features, the nattily attired, sixty-four-year-old NFL team owner already had a well-deserved reputation for flamboyance, showmanship, and erratic behavior. And like other Southern-born segregationists, Marshall stood firm against race-mixing. “We’ll start signing Negroes,” he once boasted, “when the Harlem Globetrotters start signing whites.” But that was about to change. Opposing Marshall was Interior Secretary Stewart Udall, whose determination that the Redskins—or “Paleskins,” as he called them—reflect John F. Kennedy’s New Frontier ideals led to one of the most high-profile contests to spill beyond the sports pages. Realizing that racial justice and gridiron success had the potential either to dovetail or take an ugly turn, civil rights advocates and sports fans alike anxiously turned their eyes toward the nation’s capital. There was always the possibility that Marshall—one of the NFL’s most influential and dominating founding fathers—might defy demands from the Kennedy administration to desegregate his lily-white team. When further pressured to desegregate by the press, Marshall remained defiant, declaring that no one, including the White House, could tell him how to run his business. In Showdown, sports historian Thomas G. Smith captures this striking moment, one that held sweeping implications not only for one team’s racist policy but also for a sharply segregated city and for the nation as a whole. Part sports history, part civil rights story, this compelling and untold narrative serves as a powerful lens onto racism in sport, illustrating how, in microcosm, the fight to desegregate the Redskins was part of a wider struggle against racial injustice in America.

Genres: Football, Sports, History, Nonfiction

256 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2011

Reviews

[James Diamond · Rating 4 out of 5]

Did you know the NFL football team in Washington DC was the last team to integrate, and that JFK and Stewart Udall had to drag them into the civil rights realities of the nation and of playing in the Capital? Thomas Smith recounts the history of the team and how it came to it’s unfortunate name.

[Michael Ginsberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like football and social/political history, this book is marvelous. It covers the history of the Redskins and their owner, George Preston Marshall, and how the Kennedy administration defeated his attempts to keep the Redskins segregated.

[John Pappajohn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Learned alot about the history (much of it not good) of my hometown team and its long time owner..

[Shellie Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a die-hard Washington Redskins fan, this was an interesting read for me. It covered the history of the franchise which I found fascinating and this book raised some conflicting questions regarding the integration of black players in the 60s. On the one hand, many people firmly opposed the integration on the basis of not wanting big government to have a say in how private businesses are run, and I sympathize with that argument. There was, however, no denying that George Marshall Preston's racist beliefs played the larger role in his decision to not hire blacks than not wanting big government intrusion. The team could have benefited so much earlier from having African Americans on the team sooner! There was talent on the market and the other teams in the NFL were capitalizing on that talent, regardless of color. Look at the Redskins today, some of our best players are black and we even had a black quarterback win us a Super Bowl. This historical narrative bounced around at times and delved into some, what I found irrelevant, personal histories of certain characters in this saga, which is the reason for my 3 star rating. But if you are a football fan, particularly of the Redskins, this book is worth the read. It highlighted some of the darker times of the franchise, but the true fan will stand by the team regardless of their history.

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

Often insightful, but overall dry, this look into the integration of the NFL's Washington Redskins left me wanting more. Smith's descriptions of the history of the team and its bigoted owner George Preston Marshall are comprehensive. However, when the book reaches the point where the team is integrated, the author relies on secondary documents to tell the story. In so doing, much of the emotion of the event is lost. This is a shame because the book does a wonderful job of juxtaposing the racial discord with the democratic society of the early 20th century. I found the subject matter compelling, as I do with all football history, but was left a bit empty handed.

[David Lucander · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick and enlightening read about how the Redskins integrated. Lost in recent discussions of the team's obviously racist name is the fact that this was the last major pro sports franchise to integrate - and the team only did so under intense pressure from the Kennedy Administration that included threatening to pull the team's lease on the federally-operated stadium on the grounds of violating fair employment law. Smith does a good job telling the story of this local drama within the context of larger events like the Civil Rights Movement and the Cold War.

[Riley Cooper · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to go with 3 and a half stars, but 4 is too high. It should have been Stewart Udall in the subtitle, not JFK. overall, it was a good historical perspective of the integration of the NFL, but it's not a strong enough story for a higher rating, in my humble opinion. Still, it is worth reading.

[Anthony · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am not a Redskins fan (Go Packers!), but I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It combines history of the NFL and the civil rights struggle in an interesting and informative read. I really learned a lot in this book.

[Phil C · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great and quick read on an interesting subject. Author stumbled over some "football" facts, (P.34 notes Big 10 is now Big XII amongst others) but captures the era and events nicely.

Recommend highly, it will be an uncomfortable read for 'Skins fans. Not a proud chapter in thier history.

[Jim Considine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Redskin fans should get extras points towards sainthood.

[Liam]

This book was a phenomenal read, especially for those who like sports. This historical non-fiction dives into the NFL in the 1960s, and how racial bias played a part in it. The book kind of kills two birds with one stone when talking about both civil rights and 1960s current events including JFK.

"Showdown" focuses on the beginning of the civil rights movement, and how sports were affected by it. John F. Kennedy was arguably the first president in the 20th century to really dive into civil rights, and had to deal with more than just basic societal issues. In the world of sports, The Washington Redskins were one of the last teams in sports to integrate African Americans into their system. As unfortunate as it was, the Redskins and JFK did not get along and had a very unhealthy relationship for the entirety of JFK's time in office. As far as JFK was concerned, equality should be for all races and as far as the Redskins were concerned, the government had no place telling them what decisions to make.

Personally, I thought this book was very intriguing. For one, I love connecting history together, especially now that I have connected it to one of my favorite things: sports. Secondly, the Washington Redskins are my favorite football team, and so it's always cool to read about them. Although I'm not proud of their stubbornness to adjust to the civil rights movement, it is still very interesting to read about your favorite sports team, or any sports team in general. I highly recommend this to any sports fanatic.