The New Yorker holiday cover takes a stab at Redskins name controversy

The New Yorker will address the Washington Redskins name controversy with its Thanksgiving edition cover.

The cover for December’s issue, which comes out next week, depicts the first Thanksgiving with the pilgrims wearing Redskins jerseys when the Native Americans arrive for the feast.

Illustrator Bruce McCall told the New Yorker he wanted to address the issue because he believes a name change is long overdue.

“This is 2014, and it seems a little late to be dealing with that stuff,” McCall told the New Yorker. “It should have been quashed a long time ago. We did everything to the Indians that we could, and it’s still going on. It seems crude and callous. Names like the Atlanta Braves come from another time. So, in my cover, I’ve brought the cultural arrogance of one side back to the 1600s and the first Thanksgiving dinner, just to see what would happen.”

Despite public outcry for a name change, and U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s decision to cancel the team’s trademark registration because of its offensive nature, owner Dan Snyder has said numerous times he has zero intention of changing the name.

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