President Donald Trump on Monday expressed support for school board members in Long Island who are fighting against progressives trying to force them to change their sports mascot.
The Massapequa School District in 2023 filed a federal lawsuit against the New York State Board of Regents, which banned Native American mascots in schools. The plaintiffs argue that this move violates their constitutional rights.
Newsday reported that the Board of Regents enacted the ban in May 2023, which requires schools to eliminate Indigenous-themed mascots, imagery, and names by the end of the 2024-2025 school year. Districts that refuse to comply could lose state aid and have their school officers removed.
“The Chief is more than a logo to our schools and community,” the district argued. The lawsuit claims the state “exceeded its scope of authority by creating a ‘blanket prohibition,’” acted “impermissibly… [and] unconstitutionally vague,” and infringed on both First and Fourteenth Amendment rights.
Massapequa, whose teams are known as the “Chiefs” is one of 13 Long Island districts that would have to change their mascots.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote, “I agree with the people in Massepequa, Long Island, who are fighting furiously to keep the Massapequa Chiefs logo on their Teams and School.”
He argued that “Forcing them to change the name, after all of these years, is ridiculous, and in actuality, an affront to our great Indian population.”
The School Board, and virtually everyone in the area, are demanding the name be kept. It has become the School’s identity and, what could be wrong with using the name, “Chief”? I don’t see the Kansas City Chiefs changing their name anytime soon! By copy of this TRUTH, I am asking my highly capable Secretary of Education, Linda McMahon, to fight for the people of Massapequa on this very important issue. LONG LIVE THE MASSAPEQUA CHIEFS!
The plaintiffs also take issue with a loophole in the law that allows schools to keep their mascots if they get approval from recognized Native American tribes. “Tribes cannot be the sole decision-makers,” the lawsuit reads, according to Newsday.
Massapequa previously reached out to the Shinnecock, according to Rainbow Chavis, who works for the tribe’s human resources department. Those conversations stalled, with Chavis noting that the Chiefs' logo isn’t historically accurate since it depicts a Western tribal member, and not a Native American indigenous to Long Island.
“It’s offensive when you say you’re trying to honor us,” Shinnecock chairman Bryan Polite said earlier this year. “That’s hogwash. If that were true, talk to someone [from the local tribe]. You honor us by incorporating our history into the curriculum, having a cultural exchange, having the [students] come to a pow wow and writing a paper over the summer.”
The president’s comments came after the chiefs asked him to intervene, The New York Post reported.
The Massapequa Chiefs are calling on the commander-in-chief for help.
Furious school-board members in the Long Island town are asking President Trump to help them fight to keep their district’s Native American logo after a judge recently ruled against them in their legal battle with the state.
“Changing the name doesn’t have any good effect on our kids. This is their identity, this is who they are — they are Chiefs,” Massapequa School Board President Kerry Wachter told The Post, adding that the district has already issued an SOS to Trump’s Department of Education.
“Perhaps the secretary of education or President Trump might feel that they might have some authority here to step in,” she said.
I’m not a fan of having the federal government get involved in matters like these. Still, Trump and those fighting against this silly law have a point. It’s one of those measures white progressives push on behalf of the marginalized people they love to exploit to push their agenda.
Realistically, how many Native Americans were calling for this type of action? I’m sure all five of them might support such a law, but most people can tell how ridiculous this is. It would be one thing if mascot names like “Chiefs” and “Warriors” were anti-Native American slurs – but they are not. Perhaps New York’s government should focus on things that actually matter – not on goofy culture war battles.
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