Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Frank Pallone (6th District of New Jersey)
NJ 6th District Congressman’s Resolution Calls for Ending Racist School Mascots Amid Trump Administration’s Efforts to Reverse State Bans
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) today introduced a resolution calling for an end to unsanctioned Native American mascots and imagery in schools, pushing back on the Trump administration’s recent efforts to stop state and local efforts to retire these harmful symbols.
“Native Americans should not be reduced to stereotypes and caricatures in places that should be dedicated to learning, respect, and human dignity,” Pallone said. “These degrading depictions are rooted in a history of discrimination that cause real harm to Native students. It’s absurd to see the Trump administration twist civil rights law to defend offensive imagery instead of protecting the students those laws were meant to serve.”
Pallone’s resolution comes as the Trump administration moves to investigate New York school districts that complied with the state’s 2022 rule to phase out Native American mascots. Native leaders and civil rights advocates have warned that the Trump administration’s actions distort the Civil Rights Act, using it to shield harmful stereotypes rather than safeguard students from discrimination.
Pallone’s resolution is endorsed by the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), the nation’s oldest and largest organization representing Tribal Nations and Native communities. It urges schools, athletic associations, and policymakers to retire Native American–themed mascots and imagery that lack the explicit consent and partnership of Tribal Nations. It also calls on the Department of Education to work directly with Tribal governments, educators, and advocates to promote respectful learning environments grounded in historical accuracy and cultural dignity.
“NCAI and its partners have long called for the elimination of unsanctioned Native ‘themed’ mascots, caricatures, and symbols from educational institutions across the United States,” said NCAI Executive Director Larry Wright, Jr. “These depictions are not tributes — they are rooted in racism and cultural appropriation that perpetuate harmful stereotypes, degrade Native peoples, and cause documented harm to Native youth. NCAI urges the Department of Education to work directly with Tribal Nations and advocates to retire these harmful mascots and to create respectful learning environments where living Native students are celebrated with dignity, not mocked as cartoonish relics of the past.”
Momentum to retire these mascots has grown across the country. In 2019, Maine became the first state to fully ban Native American mascots in public schools and colleges. Since then, multiple states — including California, Colorado, Oregon, and Washington — have adopted laws, regulations, or statewide education policies that restrict or phase out Indigenous mascots and imagery in public schools.