Before the New Year, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Elizabeth Burmaster sent a letter to 39 Wisconsin school districts asking them to reconsider their American Indian mascots, logos and nicknames. Local school districts across the state now have the opportunity to shine — to demonstrate their commitment to fostering a positive learning environment for every student by replacing their mascots with images that all students and their families can feel comfortable and proud supporting.

So-called "Indian" mascots are misleading, inappropriate and oftentimes blatantly offensive. Wisconsin's share of these images spans the whole range — from empty names that have been divorced from old stereotypical logos to crowds that still perform the "tomahawk chop" at school sporting events. Take my high school, Wauwatosa East, for example. In the '40s and '50s, our school was represented by a dancing caricature called Tommy Hawk. He carried — you guessed it — a tomahawk. Somewhere down the line, he morphed into Tommy Raider, who was a truly ugly stereotype. Older siblings of friends told me the mascot would show up at sporting events and dance around to rile the crowd. By the time I entered high school, the Tommy Raider mascot had been formally dispensed with and our school's logo was an arrow.

Unfortunately, 'Tosa East couldn't bear to cut Tommy out completely. His big-nosed, snarling face can still be found on a wall in the most popular study-hall room in the school. Emotions flew high and alumni descended on the school in outrage when, during my sophomore year, it was suggested that Tommy be given the axe.

He's still there.

Despite a school assembly arranged to address the topic, at which American Indians who lived in our area asked us to take the mascot down, the student body voted overwhelmingly in favor of keeping its last display of Tommy Raider.

We made a mistake. We were swayed by arguments for tradition, school spirit, pride and good intentions. We convinced ourselves that without that ugly, inaccurate and offensive mascot, a part of our tradition would be lost. In defending the tradition of Tommy Raider, however, we ignored an even longer-established tradition — that of the American Indians who once occupied what is now the city of Wauwatosa.

Mascots like the one at my high school perpetuate oversimplified views of Wisconsin's native peoples. Mascots don't teach us anything about the rich and varied cultures of Wisconsin's Indian tribes, nor do they accurately represent even a single Wisconsin tribe. Nothing about a caricature or a nickname like the "Redmen" (currently used in Rib Lake) comes even remotely close to honoring our state's American Indians. Representing American Indians as warriors is equally unsatisfactory — the Wisconsin Indian Education Association points out that the warrior image springs from a "tragic part of [their] history, focusing on wartime survival.” Then there are the Auburndale Apaches (the Apaches live in the southwest United States) and the numerous logos based on the image of a Plains Indian (the plains are on the other side of the Mississippi River) that are not only wrong because they use real people and real human groups as mascots, but also because they have absolutely no legitimate ties to any Wisconsin tribes!

It's true that some American Indians, and even some tribes, are not bothered by certain "Indian" mascots. However, that is not the case here in Wisconsin. The immediate past president of the Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council, the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin, the National Council of American Indians and the Wisconsin Indian Education Association are just some of the individuals and organizations who have called for the elimination of "Indian" mascots, nicknames and logos in Wisconsin public schools.

My advice to local school districts is to honor this request — and to do it quickly. Teach your students a valuable lesson about race and respect by permanently retiring images that preserve misleading and sometimes harmful stereotypes.

Liz Sanger ([email protected]) is a senior majoring in violin performance and English. She is a proud graduate of 'Tosa East High School who appreciates her alma mater for its abundant academic and other enrichment opportunities — not its old mascot.