Former employees and cheerleaders share new allegations against NFL team owner Dan Snyder
During a House Oversight Committee roundtable, former cheerleader and marketing and events coordinator Tiffani Johnston accused Snyder of putting his hand on her thigh during a dinner party, then grabbing her arm to pull her into her limo as she spurned advances, a new allegation.
A former video production manager alleges he was asked to produce a lewd video featuring nude snippets of cheerleaders from an unwitting photo shoot at Snyder’s request.
Several former employees claim that for years Snyder created a toxic environment of sexual abuse and harassment, where female employees were asked to wear tight clothes and faced lewd language and unwanted advances.
“Dan Snyder rules by fear,” the team‘s former chief marketing officer, Melanie Coburn, told the panel.
Snyder responded to the allegations in a statement Thursday.
“While past conduct within the team has been unacceptable, the allegations leveled against me personally at today’s roundtable – many of which date back more than 13 years – are outright lies. I unreservedly deny equivocates having participated in such conduct, at any time and with respect to any person.
“Tanya and I will not be distracted by those with an opposing agenda to continue the positive people and culture changes that have been made to the team over the past 18 months, and those that we continue to make on and in off the field,” Snyder said, referring to his wife, who was named the team’s co-CEO last year.
Lisa Banks and Debra Katz, attorneys representing the six witnesses who testified as well as more than 40 former employees, said in a statement Thursday that the testimonies were “an important first step in keeping the Washington football team and places of across the country, responsible for the mistreatment of female employees.”
“Today’s roundtable sent the message that Congress will not tolerate … attempts to shirk responsibility for one of the nation’s most important workplaces,” the statement added.
But the league never released the full findings of the investigation.
The league’s lack of transparency has been called a “cover-up” by several of the accusers, who are demanding that the full report be made public.
Banks and Katz again called on the league to release the report in their Thursday statement, saying employees participated in the investigation “based on the belief that the findings would be made public” and “lead to change.” .
“By concealing the findings of the investigation, the NFL and the WFT (Washington Football Team) are attempting to silence these witnesses and avoid liability,” the statement added. “It’s time for Congress to demand transparency and accountability.”