The Massapequa school board has announced that it will keep fighting to preserve the “Chiefs” name for its sports teams after a Long Island judge rejected a lawsuit that aimed to reverse New York’s ban on Native American mascots.
The district, together with the Native American Guardians Association (NAGA), sued the state Board of Regents over a 2023 rule that required all public schools to drop Indigenous imagery and team names or risk losing funding. The court dismissed the case and denied an injunction to block the ban, prompting Massapequa officials to vow an appeal.
In a statement to the NY Post, the board said: “We will continue to fight to preserve the Chiefs’ name.”
NAGA, an organization that supports the use of Native American symbols in sports, worked with Massapequa to allow the use of the Chiefs logo and to provide supplementary Indigenous‑culture instruction. A NAGA representative had previously told the Post: “You’re talking about strength, talking about being something that people uphold.” “People want to emulate you.”
The guardians argued in court that forcing the town to drop the Chiefs name infringed on NAGA’s right to contract, but Judge Sanket Bulsara rejected that claim. He wrote in the court papers: “NAGA has no right to the Chiefs mascot. It does not own it or have a trademark on it.” “NAGA has no greater right to license the Chiefs mascot than a random member of the public.”
Judge Bulsara also criticized the state’s ban, suggesting it might have serious constitutional issues. He noted that the law “may create a legal classification based on race or ancestry, which subjects it to the most demanding form of judicial scrutiny,” and could encroach on the First Amendment rights of board members and staff. He cautioned, however, that these complex questions were beyond the scope of his ruling.
The New York State Education Department has yet to respond to a request for comment.
NAGA members—including Frank Black Cloud—joined Education Secretary Linda McMahon at Massapequa High School’s gym last May, where McMahon pledged federal support for the town. She told the Post in August that protecting Massapequa remains the administration’s top priority.
President Trump has also been vocal on the issue. In an interview with Fox News last summer, he said, “We’ve got to get the name back to the Chiefs.” He later posted on Truth Social that “It has become the School’s identity and, what could be wrong with using the name, ‘Chief’? I don’t see the Kansas City Chiefs changing their name anytime soon!”
NAGA has until December 29 to file an amended complaint.
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