By LEONARD FORSMAN | Guest columnist

This Sunday, Nov. 5, our Seattle Seahawks will host the Washington, D.C. NFL franchise in Seattle — a city named after Chief Seattle, the ancestral leader of the Suquamish Tribe.

The Washington, D.C. NFL franchise is well known for their culturally offensive name and mascot, which demean the First Americans of this nation. The irony of the Seahawks residing in a city named after an ancestral Chief and possessing a logo that is respectful of our Northwest traditional culture is not lost on local Tribes and our neighboring Urban Indian community representing Tribes across the nation.

In addition, the City of Seattle and CenturyLink Field rest upon the homelands of the Coast Salish people, and the culture of many Native American tribes is visibly woven deeply throughout the City.

NFL players have brought attention to the struggle against police brutality. Let us also recognize other injustices within the league itself, the demeaning characterization of Native Americans — the logo and mascot of the Washington, D.C. NFL franchise.

The mascot caricature continues to perpetuate racism and bigotry toward the First Americans and studies have shown the negative impacts these offensive mascots have on our Native youth. We ask that NFL owners, fans, players and sponsors join in demanding that the Washington, D.C. NFL franchise take the simple step of abandoning their demeaning name and mascot to help start healing the wounds caused by this nation’s historic treatment of Native Americans.

Rethink … Replace … Rename.

— Leonard Forsman is chairman of the Suquamish Tribe and vice chairman of the U.S. Advisory Council on Historic Preservation. He is a graduate of the University of Washington (B.A., anthropology) and Goucher College (M.A., historic preservation). He serves on the board of the Suquamish Museum, the Suquamish Foundation, the Washington Indian Gaming Association, and the Tribal Leaders Congress on Education.