The Massachusetts State Flag represents the long, sordid history of violence towards Indigenous people by European settlers and needs CHANGE! The flag depicts an Indigenous person holding a bow and arrow standing beneath an arm triumphantly wielding a sword above their head. Further, the Latin words on the banner around the image translate to, “by the sword we seek peace”. This image symbolizes the practice of scalping which was used to terrorize Indigenous communities by European colonists throughout the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries in North America. "Indian bounty laws" were put in place throughout the region which literally placed prices on the heads of Indigenous men, women, and children. Massachusetts offered a bounty of 40 pounds for a male scalp, and 20 pounds for scalps of women and children. In fact, the scalps of Indigenous people could be viewed in museums in New England well into the 1980's. The Massachusetts State Flag is equivalent to any other object put on display in remembrance of these cruel and barbaric acts meant to murder and dehumanize Indigenous populations in North America. The flag and all that it represents must be acknowledged and permanently retired. I urge you to sign your name to this petition in order to move the State of Massachusetts in a positive direction towards reparations for Indigenous peoples by first removing this violent and hateful symbol from all government buildings, schools, youth organizations, and businesses in  Massachusetts and any of the other 49 states representing this flag. Indigenous people have such a rich history in our Nation which has been erased from our history books through practices such as scalping, and I strongly believe that now is the  time for these histories to be represented fully and truthfully. I propose that a new flag be created to honor Indigenous people and Indigenous culture in Massachusetts. Perhaps a flag depicting the culture of Indigenous people of the Wampanoag Nation, since the majority of the state was once composed of Wampanoag territories. Let's start a dialogue about what a new Massachusetts State Flag honoring Indigenous people would like and right this wrong against Indigenous people by acknowledging our dark past and moving forward; first by changing the states flag.