Friday, March 8, 2019

One by One, Change will Come

Up until recently, the State of Maine had one remaining high school with an American Indian mascot. Skohegan is the county seat of Somerset County, the Skowhegan Regional school district services 5 other neighboring communities. The Press Herald published the following story earlier this week about a press release from Maine's Department of Education. The link is below.


The history of Maine and tribal relations revolves around a series of wars with the Wabanaki Confederacy. By 1725, the 4th Anglo-Abenaki War ended with the native population of the Somerset area either pushed out or massacred. This history, like most American relationships with local tribes, makes using the mascot far more uncomfortable.


Later in the week, Skowhegan held a meeting to discuss the mascot. Apparently, the meeting concluded with a resolution to discontinue the name. The story is below, reported by the local ABC affiliate. The State of Maine no longer has American Indian mascots in their schools.


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