Jalen Rose Wants To Retire Using Term ‘Mount Rushmore’ When Referring To Sports Greats
Jalen Rose is tired of people using “Mount Rushmore” in referencing a quartet of the greatest figures in sports.
The former NBA star and current ESPN analyst wants to cancel the term because the monument was built “on top of dead bodies” of Native Americans whose land was taken from them.
In a video Rose tweeted, he says, “Can we retire using ‘Mount Rushmore?’ That should be offensive to all of us, especially Native Americans, Indigenous people who were the first people here before Christopher Columbus.”
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“That land was stolen from them when it was discovered that it contained gold,” he continued, “and 25 years later, to add insult to injury, four American presidents were put on what we call Mount Rushmore on the top of the dead bodies that [are] buried right underneath. So, I call for you and for myself — I’m owning this, too — let’s stop using the term ‘Mount Rushmore’ when we’re talking about our favorite rappers, talking about our favorite movies, talking about our favorite players.”
Rose went on to compare the term to the names of sports franchises who had to change their monikers because of their offensive nature.
“Why do you think Washington changed their name from Redskins? I do a show and didn’t say that word for eight years,” he said. “Because it’s offensive. What about the Cleveland Indians? Same thing. Why did they change the name? Because it’s offensive.”
At the start of the 2020 season, Washington’s NFL franchise changed their name to The Washington “Football Team” for two seasons before becoming the Commanders this offseason. Cleveland’s baseball team dropped its nickname after last season and became the “Guardians.”
Watch Jalen Rose speak about Mount Rushmore below.