President Trump Defends Sports Teams With Native American Names, Says “Degrading" To Change Them

While some sports media shy away from using terms like "Redskins" or "Indians" for teams once tied to Native American iconography, President Donald Trump has boldly endorsed these names. 

No. 47 argues that restoring them would honor both fans and Native Americans.

Trump addressed this issue when asked about potentially reviving the Washington Redskins’ name in connection to a new stadium deal in Washington, D.C. He highlighted the divide between sports media, which often deems such references offensive, and fans, who largely do not.

President Donald Trump. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

Photo: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

A 2016 Washington Post poll bolsters Trump’s view, revealing that 90 percent of Native Americans were not offended by the Washington Redskins’ name, suggesting strong community support for retaining these names.

"The Indian population is a great part of this country, great heritage," Trump said. "I think it’s degrading to the Indian population," he added regarding the name changes, "and it’s a great population, and they like when they’re called by various names."

OutKick founder Clay Travis echoed Trump’s unfiltered stance. 

On X, he posted, "Trump tees off on changing team mascot names because of Native American connections. He’s right. It’s ludicrous."

Travis has closely tracked this debate, particularly with his Atlanta Braves, whose "tomahawk chop" has been slammed by progressive sports writers as offensive and worthy of banning.

Efforts to erase Native American references led to the Redskins adopting the widely criticized "Washington Football Team" name. Likewise, the Cleveland Indians rebranded as the Cleveland Guardians in 2021.

For some, these changes seem permanent. Yet, fans and Native American groups, like NAGA (Native American Guardians Association), have campaigned to reinstate the Washington Redskins name, seeing it as a positive tribute to their culture.

Joe Gordon and Lou Boudreau of the Cleveland Indians. (Getty Images)

Trump reinforced this perspective, arguing that removing these names erases history. 

"I can tell you that I spoke to people of Indian heritage who love that name and love that team, and I think it’s a much superior name to what they have right now and it had heritage behind it, it had something special," he said.

He also questioned the Cleveland rebranding: "They changed the name of the Cleveland Indians. Why would you take the name ‘Indians’ off the Cleveland Indians? And now it’s called the Cleveland something else. So it just doesn’t make sense to me."

READ: Donald Trump Backs School in Fight to Keep 'Chiefs' Brand Amid Woke Backlash

Earlier this week, Trump defended Massapequa High School on Long Island, which was forced to abandon its "Chiefs" team name after progressives labeled it insensitive. 

In a fiery Truth Social post on Monday, Trump vowed to protect the school and its identity.

Locals and supporters, backed by Massapequa School Board President Kerry Wachter, pushed back, filing a lawsuit alongside other towns. Wachter warned that changes such as these could cost the school $1 million or more.

Send us your thoughts: alejandro.avila@outkick.com / Follow along on X: @alejandroaveela