The New York State Board of Regents voted to ban all Native American mascots, names, and imagery from school districts across the state. This ban will impact the SACHEM Central School District on Long Island.

PURPOSE OF THE PETITION: Please sign this petition to show your support for keeping Sachem's name, moniker, and logo intact and preserving our community's identity.

BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT: As of April 19, when this petition was started, the ban's guidelines are still unclear, but we know that our SACHEM name, Flaming Arrows moniker, and arrowhead logo may be impacted. Every district building - plus several aspects of the buildings - is also potentially at risk of failing to comply with these measures. 

As a passionate and proud alumni group - some 60,000 strong - we want to be crystal clear that our entire school community was built on the premise of honoring Native American culture and heritage. SACHEM is a unique community with a rich tradition, spirit, and pride that you can only understand if you grew up here and bought into the culture. Changing any of SACHEM's branding, names, or logo would devastate our community’s identity. Remember, this is not just an average school district but a large community comprising several hamlets and villages with nearly 90,000 taxpayers.

We hope to honor and bring forth Native American heritage through our school community, not “harass or discriminate” as the Dignity for All Students Act suggests. How are we honoring Native Americans? Our entire district is dedicated to their heritage in name, iconography, and the rich appreciation we show toward history. Ask our social studies teachers who teach about Native American history, ask our student-athletes who are proud to wear that name on their chest because of what it represents, and ask a majority of the alumni group what it means to be from SACHEM. 

OTHER SUGGESTIONS: While we want to preserve our community's identity, we also want to provide more education on Native American culture while creating opportunities to have Native Americans come to the schools to talk about their story. This movement is as much about progressing toward open dialogue and communication with all stakeholders as it is about protecting who we are as a community.

#GoArrows I #WeAreSachem I #ArrowUp