Cambridge schools hires consultant to ease Indians mascot vitriol
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The Cambridge schools logo on its web homepage as of May 2021. Vitriol in the district is high as it debates whether to eliminate the Indian logo, which has been widely dubbed as cultural-appropriation of a people the U.S. nearly wiped out.Cambridge schools websiteShow MoreShow Less
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The Cambridge school district in Washington County is seeing intense debate over eliminating its Indian mascot in 2021.Cambridge school district websiteShow MoreShow Less
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Cambridge fans cheer on the Indians during the girls basketball Class C regional semifinal versus Seton Catholic at Saratoga Springs High School Thursday, March 8, 2018. The debate in 2021 about eliminating the Indians mascot has been a vitriol-fused discussion. (Ed Burke - Special to The Times Union) Show MoreShow Less
While Cleveland agrees to drop Indians, six Section II schools still use nickname | The Daily Gazette
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Two name changes at the national level – but few at the local, high school level.
It’s been 19 years since New York State Commissioner of Education Richard P. Mills drafted a memo to all school board presidents and superintendents of public schools on mascots.
“After careful thought and consideration, I have concluded that the use of Native American symbols or depictions as mascots can become a barrier to building a safe and nurturing school community and improving academic achievement for all students,” he wrote in the April 2001 memo. “I ask superintendents and school boards to lead their communities to a new understanding of this matter. I ask boards to end the use of Native American mascots as soon as practical.”