A bill that would prohibit schools from using names, logos or mascots associated with Native Americans, including specific tribes, is headed to the Illinois Senate.
The proposed legislation, which passed in the Illinois House of Representatives on Thursday with a 71-40 vote, could impact at least 11 Metro East schools. These include the Mascoutah Indians, Collinsville Kahoks, Cahokia High School Comanches and Whiteside Junior High’s Warriors.
The bill has raised conversations on the House floor and beyond about the best ways to teach and preserve the state’s Native American history and if this can be done appropriately through schools’ mascots and imagery.
“We do find it important to celebrate and recognize in a positive way what the Indian mascot means,” Mascoutah School District 19 Superintendent David Deets said. “To Mascoutah, and I’m sure to other districts in Illinois, our Indian mascot is a source of pride and honor.”
But proponents of the bill said there are ways to commemorate the state’s Native American roots that won’t be seen as divisive, racist or offensive.
“This argument that we are somehow teaching history and learning history through these mascots is nonsense,” Rep. Laura Faver Dias, D-Grayslake, who is a former teacher, said on the House floor Thursday. “Find a better way to teach and learn history.”
The bill was brought forth by Rep. Maurice A. West, the lawmaker behind the Freeburg mascot bill, which passed the Illinois House earlier this week.
What would schools need to change?
- Names of federally recognized tribes and historical Native American people
- Mascots depicting Native Americans
- Imagery associated with Native American people, such as feathered headdresses, tomahawks and arrowheads
- Terms like “Redskins, Braves, Chiefs, Chieftains, Tribe, Indians, or any synonymous term, logo or mascot depicting Native Americans”
However, the amended legislation would allow a school to continue using the name of a federally recognized tribe, and an agreed upon logo and mascot, so long as the tribe gives permission. The tribe and the school must also partner to create policies that prohibit slurs, stereotypes and other offensive portrayals.
A school can continue using uniforms or other materials purchased before the legislation’s effective date that feature the name, logo or mascot until September 2030 so long as they don’t acquire any more of such materials. They must also have chosen a new name, logo or mascot by July 1, 2026.
The bill does not provide any funding mechanisms to make such changes. Deets and Collinsville School District 10 Superintendent Brad Skertich said even with the given lead time, the alterations could have multi-million dollar implications.
“At a time when everything is getting more expensive and when looking at our priorities in terms of safety, security, technology, finding high quality staff … spending over $2 million on a mascot or logo change, whether over five years or 10 years, is not a responsible use of funds,” Skertich said.
The National Indian Education Association and American Psychological Association previously made statements on the harm Native mascots may bring, including how it can perpetuate racial stereotypes and inaccurate portrayals of Indigenous culture, as well as impacting the self-esteem of Indigenous youth.
“Yes, there’s a cost to schools to make these changes, but there is a cost to not doing that … to students’ mental health (and) a cost to the culture and climate of the school,” Faver Dias said. “Frankly, sometimes there is a cost to doing the right thing.”
The Mascoutah school district received a letter of support from the Native American Guardians Association. The Association’s motto, “educate, not eradicate,” is one Deets repeats. Skertich said the Collinsville district has a formal letter of endorsement from the Western Cherokee Nation of Arkansas and Missouri to use the Kahok mascot.
The Western Cherokee Nation of Arkansas and Missouri is not a federally recognized tribe.
“We’ve been doing this right for a long time, let us continue that opportunity,” Skertich said.
Here’s how Metro East lawmakers voted
All House members from the Metro East voted against the bill.
- Rep. Amy Elik, R-Godfrey: No
- Rep. David Friess, R-Red Bud: No
- Rep. Jay Hoffman, D-Swansea: No
- Rep. Charlie Meier, R-Okawville: No
- Rep. Kevin Schmidt, R-Millstadt: No
- Rep. Katie Stuart, D-Edwardsville: No
Editor's note: This story was originally published by the Belleville News-Democrat. Madison Lammert is a reporter for the BND, a news partner of St. Louis Public Radio.
