Coatesville Senior Pictures: We need to educate our kids

With graduations upon us, we thought we'd share another reason why the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania needs to outlaw the use of Native peoples and culture for non-Native identity in sports.

A headdress is a sacred object of honor and distinction earned by a member of the Native community for their courage, service, generosity and the respect they have gained by adding one feather at a time for each act of caring for their community.

Below you see the senior portrait of a football team member from Coatesville High School, PA having no idea or life experience to know what true sacrifice, service and loyalty to a community means. It makes a mockery of Native culture and values.

Imagine a high school student, or anyone, wearing the medals earned by someone in our military for acts of courage and valor. Wouldn't we acknowledge that as wrong?

We understand that this student has been taught to misappropriate Native identity and claim it for his own and be proud of what he thinks it represents. But this is an act of identity theft. If this young man knew the history of taking that has happened to the Indigenous peoples of this land since first contact, he might realize why this is a violation, an unacceptable taking/theft.

During a time when the current resident of the White House is living in luxury, he is at the same time dismantling programs that were created to support Native families, tribal communities, educational institutions and environmental protection of Native homelands. 

In the midst of this destructive administration, it is imperative to move forward with the policy of not degrading Native peoples for our own sports fun and entertainment.

Native mascots cause real and lasting harm to Native youth .