Redskins president Bruce Allen has promised to punish anyone who acted inappropriately during a team cheerleading trip to Costa Rica that took place in 2013.
The promise comes one day after the New York Times published a damning story that painted an ugly picture of the Redskins organization. In the story, several Redskins cheerleaders said they felt like the team was "pimping" the girls out during the Costa Rican photoshoot.
The women were staying at an adults only resort and had known beforehand that they would need to be topless for part of the photoshoot, which was for the Redskins calendar that year. However, what they didn't know is that dozens of men were going to be there to watch them in their state of undress. According to the Times, a group of male sponsors and FedExField suite holders all had up-close access to the women.
"The Redskins organization is very concerned by the allegations involving our cheerleaders in the recent New York Times article," Allen said in a statement. "We are immediately looking into this situation and want to express how serious we take these allegations."
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Although Allen was concerned about the allegations, he did point out that the team has already talked to several other cheerleaders who were on the trip, and those cheerleaders told a different story than the one that was published by the Times. For its story, the Times anonymously interviewed five cheerleaders from the squad.
"Based on the dialogue we've had with a number of current and former cheerleaders over the past 48 hours, we've heard very different first-hand accounts that directly contradict many of the details of the May 2 article," Allen said. "I can promise that once we have completed looking into this matter, if it is revealed that any of our employees acted inappropriately, those employees will face significant repercussions."
One of the biggest issues that any of the cheerleaders had during the trip was that they were supposed to serve as personal "escorts" to some of the men for a night on the town. One cheerleader said it felt like the the team was "pimping" them out, although she did say there was no sex involved.
"It's just not right to send cheerleaders out with strange men when some of the girls clearly don't want to go," one cheerleader who was in Costa Rica told the Times. "But unfortunately, I feel like it won't change until something terrible happens, like a girl is assaulted in some way, or raped. I think teams will start paying attention to this only when it's too late."
Allen said that team will start paying attention now and would "take all necessary measures to create a safe and respectful work environment" for the cheerleaders.
"Our entire organization has great appreciation and respect for our cheerleaders," Allen said. "From the work they do in the local community, to visiting our troops abroad, and for always representing the Redskins organization in a first-class manner, these women are exemplary members of our organization and are worthy of our utmost respect. We are proud of these women and support them during this time. We will continue to take all necessary measures to create a safe and respectful work environment."
The situation involving the Redskins cheerleaders is just the latest in a rash of accusations made against NFL teams by the women who cheer for them. In 2014, the Raiders' cheerleaders reached a settlement in their unfair employment practices lawsuit against the team. Bengals and Bills cheerleaders have also sued their teams for issues relating to fair pay and expectations for hygiene and grooming habits.
The Dolphins and Saints have also been dealing with accusations of unfair treatment over the past few years. In mid-April, a Dolphins cheerleader accused the team of discrimination due to her gender and religion. Those accusations came just weeks after a former Saints cheerleader accused the team of having two different sets of rules for their employees -- one for women and another for men.
The cheerleaders involved in the Saints and Dolphins cases have said that they would be willing to settle their discrimination claims for one dollar each if Roger Goodell is willing to meet with them for four-hours to have a conversation about the issues facing NFL cheerleaders.
