Maya Washington, daughter of Vikings legend, develops curriculum about the importance of racial equality
ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Minnesota Vikings Legend Gene Washington is one of 22 players who helped shape the first fully integrated college football team in the U.S. in the early 1960s.
"I only knew my dad as the guy who put on the suit and went to work at 3M and was in the community, you know. Falling asleep during my little drama performances at the end of a long workday," said Maya Washington, filmmaker and author.
Washington always knew of her parents' upbringing in the segregated south. It wasn't until her dad's Michigan State teammate Bubba Smith passed away in 2011 that she had a full understanding of how he and the other Black athletes on that team were pioneers and changemakers.
"I realized that not only did I not know this because I'm his child, there were so many people in the country who didn't know it," explained Washington.
She sought to chronicle her dad's life in "Through the Banks of the Red Cedar," a documentary film and book of the same name.
"He and many others were part of really the final and full integration of college football but also that he and his teammates at the Vikings became really important pioneers in a lot of what the NFL looks like today," said Washington.
Washington has now developed a free discussion guide and other curriculum for teachers whose students watch the documentary or read the book. It speaks to the importance of the civil rights movement, racial equality, and social justice. It also emphasizes the need to learn people's stories.
"We have access to people who have profound wisdom, knowledge and information about the past that can really help us navigate our own lives," said Washington.
Washington hopes her discovery will lead young people to learn about their own family history.
"I hope that people really feel strongly, as I do, that history is in your own household. So many times, in school we learn about these big heroes. We have to memorize them and regurgitate them in a test. and I think what we don't always realize that there's history in your own household. There's something that's pioneering that somebody did in your family," said Washington.
To learn more about "Through the Banks of the Red Cedar," click here.