MASAPEQUA, NY (AP) – As a high school hockey player, Adam Drexler proudly wore the MaSAPEQUA Chiefs jersey.
However, when members of the Chickasaw nation grew up and learned about the roots of the Indigenous people, he began to question the school mascot (a stereotypical Native American man wearing a headdress).
Now his hometown on Long Island A permanent discussion Above Indigenous people’s images location American Sports: Trump Administration The investigation has begun On Friday, New York officials were discriminating against Masapequa by threatening to withhold funds. The town refused to obey State duties Retires from Native American sports names and mascots.
“There were no tribes east of Mississippi wearing headdresses. “How can we discuss symbols that are not important or relevant here? At the same time, we argue that we respect and respect the town’s culture and history.”
It’s hard to miss images of Native Americans around Masapequa, a coastal settlement 40 miles (64km) east of Manhattan Approximately 90% White residents.
The Chiefs logo is prominently featured in signs adorning schools, police and fire station buildings. In protest of the change to mascots, students have painted colorful murals with logos and team names on the commercial building next to the high school.
A statue of a Native American wearing headdresses flowing over people depicting buffaloes, horses and totem poles, just a few minutes’ drive away next to the town’s post office.
“When you think about Masapequa, you think of the chief,” said Forest Bennett, a 15-year-old sophomore.
Towns conflicting with state policy
New York is trying to eliminate Native American mascot schools that date back more than 20 years to the Republican administration of George Pataki, and has pledged to give districts until the end of the school year in 2022 and replace them.
Massapequa, one of four school districts on Long Island, filed a federal lawsuit challenging the ban, claiming that the team name and mascot choice were protected by the First Amendment, but a judge dismissed the case last month.
The district can seek exemption from state mandate if approved by Native American tribes, but state officials say Masapeco has been “silenced” for many years.
A school board spokesperson said he intends to appeal the judge’s ruling on Wednesday. The board also praised President Donald Trump’s investigation by federal educational institutions Moved to demolition The past few weeks.
Trump has visited Long Island frequently in recent years, as suburban areas have. Changed Republicans. Last spring he visited Masapequa Join Wake New York City police officer.
“To change names to them after all these years is ridiculous and in fact a frustration against our great Indian population,” Trump wrote in a recent social media post. A few days later, he posed with Masapequa’s Chiefs sweater in an oval office. “I haven’t seen the Kansas City chief change his name anytime soon!”
The NFL chiefs nevertheless stick to their names Year of protest From some Native American activists. Five years ago, the team Fans are forbidden to wear headdresses Or face painting referring to Native American culture.
Meanwhile, other professional teams including the Washington Redskins in soccer ( Now Commander ) and the Cleveland Indians in baseball ( Now the Guardian ), has adopted a new moniker and logo.
Residents say “honor” Native American mascot
Along the eateries and shops next to Massapequa Hai, students and parents insist on the name of the team, with the mascot aimed to honor the people of Delaware who lived in the forests of the Northeast and Canada for thousands of years before their deaths from the wider Lenape, or the European colonization.
“We’re not trying to do anything rude,” said Christina Zabatino, the mother of two. “In fact, if it was my face, I would be honored, do you know what I mean?”
Lucas Lumberg, a 15-year-old sophomore, shrugged criticism that the school’s logo reflects traditional outfits from Midwest tribes. I wear clothes Renape forced the people to eventually move further and west by colonial settlers and then by US government forces as the nation expanded.
“It’s not necessarily how they look here, but it feels like it’s still conveying that we respect Native Americans,” Lamberg said. “I think people might get mad at it, but I feel like it’s been here long enough to stay.”
Native Americans say mascots are dehumanizing
But that negative attitude is precisely why stereotypical mascots are so aggressive, argues Joseph Pierce, also director of Native American and Indigenous Studies at Stony Brook University on Long Island.
“It’s as if this image was a shorthand for all Indians,” the Cherokee citizen said. “And it reduces us to types rather than portraying us as clear people.”
The Indian mascot also contributes to the view that Indigenous people are artefacts of the past and not living communities facing today’s urgent threat, says Joey Funbrini, an Indian Delaware member who works for the New York Indian Council, a nonprofit providing health care to Native Americans.
“That dehumanization is not harmless. It directly contributes to why our struggle is ignored or minimized,” said the 29-year-old Brooklyn resident.
The hilarious mascot also blurs the harsh legacy of Massapequa’s violence against Native Americans, and John Kane, a member of the Mohawk tribe in upstate New York, has been pushing through districts throughout the state for years to change names and mascots.
After all, the town was the site of a massacre in which many native men, women and children were killed by Europeans in the 1600s, he said.
“They aren’t trying to honor us, which is why the accuracy of the logo is not important to them,” Kane said. “So, is there any idea that this is a kind of honor for us? I mean, come on.
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Follow Philip Marcelo twitter.com/philmarcelo.
