Trump's education secretary Linda McMahon makes Long Island high school's mascot a 'top priority'

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: The Independent

Friday 22 August 2025 12:20 BST


Education Secretary Linda McMahon has said that protecting the Native American chief mascot of Massapequa High School in Long Island, New York, is a “top priority” for her department. The school has been embroiled in a legal fight over the Massapequa Chiefs name, as has nearby Connetquot over its Thunderbirds name, since 2023 when the New York State Board of Regents banned the use of indigenous names, logos and imagery in public schools and threatened to withdraw state funding from any that did not comply with its ruling.

Four Long Island districts, including Massapequa, challenged the ban, only for a federal judge to side with the Empire State earlier this year. The dispute echoes that over the renaming of the Washington Redskins and Cleveland Indians at a national level.

President Donald Trump has demanded those names be restored and has recently turned his attention to Massapequa, telling Fox News host Brian Kilmeade on Sunday: “I love Massapequa. I’ve heard that name for years. I have a lot of friends in Massapequa… We’ve got to get the name back to the Chiefs.” Trump added that, in his opinion, it is “demeaning” to Native Americans to lose the Chiefs name, rather than insensitive to keep it.

The name was originally chosen to remember the Massapequa Tribe, who lived on Long Island until they were displaced by European colonists in the 17th century.

Read more: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/linda-mcmahon-massapequa-chiefs-trump-b2812426.html

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REFERENCES

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143447837
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143469021

[TommyT139]

1. I hope she doesn't hear about my high school team's name

...which, let's just say, referenced royalty.

🚫👑!

[roscoeroscoe]

2. LAND BACK

If you want to honor the tribe...

[moonshinegnomie]

3. let them keep the logo but.....

make them ineligible for any playoffs or championships. and make the results of any game involving them not count in heh standings for their opponents win or lose.

watch how fast they remove the logo

[Ray Bruns]

4. Geezus Christ is this all this bimbo has to worry about?

[radical noodle]

5. What's next?

RFK, Jr. demanding syrup and pancake mix to put Aunt Jemima back on the labels? For a healthy America...

[3catwoman3]

13. Don't give him any ideas.

[sop]

6. "Displaced"?

"The Massapequa Tribe of Long Island were decimated by European colonization, disease, and violence, including the 1644 Massapequa Massacre, losing their lands and population over time. While the modern town of Massapequa bears their name, the Massapequa people as a distinct tribe on Long Island ceased to exist, with their legacy now primarily associated with the historical massacre and the ongoing debate over the use of Native American mascots by the local school."

[Scrivener7]

7. While US students lag behind almost every other first world nation.

Assholes.

[Mysterian]

8. Malicious incompetence

Idiots in charge of major agencies.

[Bayard]

9. trump probably thinks Indigenous people deserved to be conquered and massacred,

For trying to impede Manifest Destiny.

Why in the world would Native Nations want to be constantly reminded of that fate?

[LudwigPastorius]

14. He absolutely does.

https://nativenewsonline.net/currents/trump-brings-removal-president-andrew-jackson-back-to-the-oval-office


https://www.usnews.com/news/ken-walshs-washington/articles/2017-03-16/president-donald-trump-pays-homage-to-andrew-jackson

But it's clear that Trump sees many aspects of himself in Jackson, the nation's seventh president who held office from 1829-37. Trump went further than ever in comparing himself to Old Hickory when he visited the Hermitage, Jackson's 1,000-acre estate in Nashville, Tennessee, on Wednesday, marking the 250th anniversary of Jackson's birth. His speech there revealed much about Trump's own presidency as he described why he admires Jackson so much. As a gesture of appreciation, Trump has begun prominently displaying the seventh president's portrait in the Oval Office.

Trump said Jackson recognized that "true leadership" means "putting America first" – one of Trump's campaign slogans

[Bayard]

16. Like calls to like....

[SergeStorms]

10. Pour some A1 on it Linda.

That fixes everything.

[JoseBalow]

11. So easy to choose to NOT offend people

All MAGAts are just assholes.

[Karasu]

12. THIS is the kind of shit Republicans want to use the DoE for, since they don't believe in education and would gladly see

it abolished.

[Old Testament Libera]

15. This should certainly be a top priority for the Education Department.

There are absolutely no more important issues in education!

Really, if this is all they can do, let's abolish it immediately, just like Trump wants.