PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: July 20, 2020 – 8:30 a.m.
NAACP Decries Silencing of Native Voices in Dartmouth ‘Indian’ Debate
New Bedford – At a meeting of local activists convened by the NAACP, area residents criticized the Dartmouth School Committee’s handling of the debate over the school’s offensive mascot, particularly singling out the Committee’s decision to exclude anyone not a Dartmouth resident from its deliberations. This virtually ensures that no Native tribal members and leaders will be heard. In response, the group agreed to mobilize to ensure that those and other voices are brought before the public. The NAACP will be announcing steps it will take towards that end soon.
“I find it sadly ironic that a people that had ancestral lands taken from them are now told they won’t be heard because they are not now residents of that land,” said New Bedford Branch President Dr. LaSella Hall, after the meeting. He pointed out that several other area schools have recently retired their “Indian”-themed mascots. These are in Braintree, Barnstable, Hanover, North Quincy.
Additionally, while it has been suggested that there was some form of “permission” or “agreement” by a tribal leader to us the mascot, the School confirmed in writing last October that this is not the case.
Others expressed frustration that such an exerted effort had to be made to remove the controversial symbol at all. Megan Page, a Pocasset Wampanoag Tribal Council Member who lives in Fairhaven said, “At a time when the coronavirus is reminding us that we need to have compassion with each other, it breaks my heart that we have to shame people to [abandon the offensive mascot].”
In addition to silencing Native Voices, the School Committee punted the issue to a Diversity Committee, which has a broader mandate than this issue. It’s expected that this will delay action and the group urged that the School Committee reconsider this decision and take on the decision itself. It was pointed out that, in any event, the Diversity Committee will be subject to laws allowing the public to attend meetings virtually, and the group pledged to continue to put pressure on both the School Committee and its Diversity Committee.
The mission of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is to secure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights in order to eliminate race-based discrimination and ensure the health and well-being of all persons.
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