Native American Guardian’s Association sues Colorado over prohibition of Native American mascots

The Native American Guardian’s Association and five individual plaintiffs with Native American heritage filed a lawsuit against Colorado, challenging the constitutionality of S.B. 21-116, a law prohibiting the use of Native American mascots by schools. 

Key Players

The Native American Guardian’s Association (NAGA) is a 501c3 non-profit organization seeking to increase awareness of Native American history and culture within public educational institutions. 

Demetrius Marez, Chase Aubrey Roubideaux, Donald Wayne Smith Jr., and two high school students referred to as John and Jane Doe, are the individual plaintiffs in the suit. 

Gov. Jared Polis (D) of Colorado is a primary defendant.

Further Details

On June 28, 2021, the Democratic-controlled Colorado legislature passed S.B. 21-116, banning the use of Native American mascots or cultural iconography in public and charter schools, as well as publicly funded institutions of higher education. The law was to take effect June 1, 2022, and instructed schools to make appropriate reforms before then; otherwise, they could face a fine of $25,000 per month. 

There are certain exceptions: For instance, any agreement regarding mascot use made before June 30, 2021, between a federally recognized Native American tribe and a public school is exempt from the law. All public schools operated by a Native American tribe or within a tribe’s reservation are also exempt. And Native American mascots may be used if approved by a tribe’s governing body. 

Before the June 1, 2022 deadline, the Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs (CCIA) was to notify all public institutions that are not currently in adherence to the policy. 

Outcome

NAGA sues to overturn S.B. 21-116

On Nov. 2, 2021, NAGA and five individual plaintiffs filed a lawsuit against Colorado government officials, challenging the constitutionality of S.B. 21-116. Defendants included Gov. Polis, State Treasurer Dave Young, Education Commissioner Katy Anthes, and others. According to the lawsuit, the act “unlawfully enacts state-sanctioned race discrimination against” Native Americans. 

Additionally, the complaint asserts that the law violates the 14th Amendment, the right to petition under the First Amendment, and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that prohibits discrimination based on race, color, or national origin. 

“Imagine a state law that barred schools from using the name or image of an African American individual on its logos or letterhead,” the lawsuit states. “That would be the end of school names honoring Martin Luther King Jr., President Barack Obama, or Justices Thurgood Marshall and Clarence Thomas.”

The plaintiffs added they were opposed to Native American caricatures, but that culturally appropriate Native American names, logos, and imagery could serve to honor and teach students and the public about Native American history. 

“Erasing Native American names and images from the public square and from public discussions echoes a maneuver that Plaintiffs have previously seen used by the eradicators of Native American heritage,” the lawsuit states, accusing Colorado of mistakenly possessing a “paternalistic assumption that it must protect Native Americans by erasing cultural references to them and to their heritage.”

The lawsuit also contends that culturally appropriate “Native American names, logos, and imagery serve to honor Native Americans, and to help public schools neutralize offensive and stereotypical Native American caricatures and iconography, while teaching students and the general public about American Indian history.”

Further, plaintiffs John and Jane Doe, who are of Cherokee and Chippewa descent, attend Yuma High School, home of the “Yuma Indians,” and would like their school to continue honoring their heritage because they “would suffer a hostile environment if [their] culture were erased from school,” the lawsuit states.  

On Nov. 4, 2021, The Washington Times reported that the CCIA had identified more than 20 schools that violated the law by using the terms “Savages,” “Indians,” and “Warriors” in their mascot’s name. 

As of Jan. 5, 2022, there were no further developments.