We posted about this story earlier in the week, about how Redskins cheerleaders were reportedly forced to go topless at their calendar shoot in Costa Rica, and now two ex cheerleaders have come out of the woodwork to defend the Redskins.
Rachel Gill and Charo Bishop, former team captains for the Washington Redskins cheerleaders, open up to TODAY about troubling allegations about a 2013 photo shoot in Costa Rica. Bishop says that allegations that the cheerleaders were pressured to go topless are “not true.” Gill says that claims that they were “pimped out” or made to act as escorts are “absolutely not what happened.”
“In all my six years, I never took off my top,” former cheerleader Maya Bonello told the “Today” show. “Regardless of whether you took your top off or not, that was always a choice.”
Take a look at the two cheerleaders back in their heyday in the gallery below:
The Times report said the 36 Redskins cheerleaders were going to Costa Rica for a calendar photo shoot at the Occidental Grand Papagayo, an “adults-only” resort on Culebra Bay.
Stephanie Jojokian, the longtime director and choreographer for the Redskins’ cheerleader, disputed many of the women’s accounts to the newspaper, and said it was not mandatory for any members to go out with men to a nightclub.
“I was not forcing anyone to go at all,” she added. “I’m the mama bear, and I really look out for everybody, not just the cheerleaders.”
The NFL said in a statement that all employees, including cheerleaders, have “the right to work in a positive and respectful environment that is free from any and all forms of harassment and discrimination and fully complies with state and federal laws.” Sounds like a crock of you know what.
