NYS Native American mascot ban to be partially repealed, attorney says
A Wantagh school board member has argued he should be able to wear Warriors apparel to "support not only student athletes, but the school community as a whole." Credit: Howard Schnapp
The state Board of Regents plans to repeal a portion of its Native American mascot ban that prohibits school officials from "utilizing or promoting any Indigenous name, logo, or mascot" when on school grounds, according to court documents.
The change would apply to "school officers and employees" when they are on school property or at a school function, state Assistant Attorney General Helena Lynch wrote in an Oct. 16 letter to state Supreme Court Justice Francis Ricigliano.
The core regulation, which prohibits the use of Native American logos, names and mascots by public schools, would otherwise remain unaffected, Lynch wrote.
The announcement comes days before Ricigliano is set to hear oral arguments in the Wantagh school district's lawsuit against the state Board of Regents. The district agreed to give up its mascot, a Native American man with a mohawk, but is fighting to keep its Warriors name.
News of the planned repeal also follows a U.S. Court of Appeals panel decision that sent back to a lower court claims that Wantagh school board member Anthony Greco, who is also acting in his capacity as a resident of the school community, has a free-speech right to wear Warriors apparel to "support not only student athletes, but the school community as a whole."
State Education Department spokesman JP O'Hare said in an emailed statement, "As schools complete the transition away from stereotypical Indigenous mascots, the Department will recommend that the Board of Regents leave decisions regarding employee clothing, including apparel displaying offensive Indigenous imagery, to local school districts, consistent with how other employee attire and personnel decisions are handled."
Repeal reaction
Wantagh schools Superintendent John McNamara on Monday said the proposed repeal was "a step in the right direction for our district."
"We'll continue to monitor it," he said. "It still has a little ways to go."
The Massapequa school board, which is also fighting the mascot ban, in a statement called the move "a significant victory for Massapequa" and is calling for the entire regulation to be repealed.
"From the beginning, we have maintained that the Native American mascot ban is an unconstitutional overreach," the board said.
But John Kane, a member of the Mohawk tribe who sits on the New York State Indigenous Mascot Advisory Council, called the proposed repeal "absurd" and said it was disappointing.
Kane said he learned of the proposal on Monday.
"How could you have a ban against this thing and then turn around and tell school officials that they can continue to promote selling and wearing clothing with the old mascot?" he said. "It doesn't make any sense."
The proposed repeal will be officially announced at a Board of Regents meeting in November. A 60-day notice and comment period will then commence before an anticipated final vote in February, according to the letter from Lynch.
School districts in New York State were given until June 30, 2025, to comply with the mascot ban, but Wantagh was granted an extension until June 30, 2027.
