McMahon launches probe into New York over ordered removal of Native American school mascot

Education Secretary Linda McMahon launched a probe into New York State's Education Department (NYSED) and the state Board of Regents for threatening to pull funding from the Massapequa School District over its refusal to end its use of a Native American mascot.

Earlier this week, President Trump weighed in to support the school district.

“Forcing them to change the name, after all of these years, is ridiculous and, in actuality, an affront to our great Indian population. The School Board, and virtually everyone in the area, are demanding the name be kept,” the president wrote about the district's high school, which is known as the Massapequa Chiefs, in a Truth Social post. 

The Native American Guardians Association (NAGA) filed a complaint with the Education Department's Office of Civil Rights claiming the NYSED violated federal civil rights laws. 

“The U.S. Department of Education will not stand by as the state of New York attempts to rewrite history and deny the town of Massapequa the right to celebrate its heritage in its schools,” McMahon said in a statement regarding the matter. 

“While New York chooses to prioritize erasing Native Americans, their rich history, and their deep connection to the state, it is requiring schools to divert time and resources away from what really matters: educating our students,” she continued.

McMahon argued that several mascots refer to indigenous or ethnic groups including the Minnesota Vikings and Notre Dame's Fighting Irish, but claimed New York “singled out” Native American heritage specifically adding that the matter would be “fully” investigated.

Trump, in his Monday Truth Social post, also questioned the move given the popularity of the Kansas City Chiefs.

"It has become the School’s identity and, what could be wrong with using the name, 'Chief'?" he wrote. "I don’t see the Kansas City Chiefs changing their name anytime soon!"

A spokesperson from the state's Education Department told The Hill it has not received any official communication from the federal government on the matter.

“However, the U.S. Department of Education’s attempt to interfere with a state law concerning school district mascots is inconsistent with Secretary McMahon’s March 20, 2025 statement that she is ‘sending education back to the states where it so rightly belongs,’” spokesperson JP O’Hare added.

“Massapequa has already filed, and lost, a lawsuit regarding this issue.  We have encouraged the Massapequa school community to consult with local Indigenous representatives, who had the following to say on this issue,” he added.

In 2023, state officials issued a directive requiring school districts to eliminate mascots that appear to appropriate Native American culture or risk losing state funding.

A state judge dismissed the district's lawsuit challenging the directive last month. The New York Post reported the school board then asked the Trump administration to intervene.

“We are not a symbol, we are not history, we exist today. To some Native children, it is hurtful to see those mascots, and you would not understand that necessarily unless you grew up in a Native community.” Germain Smith, Former Shinnecock Tribal Councilman, said in a statement on the issue.

In 1644, the Massapequa Massacre was undertaken by Governor Willem Kieft, who hired 25,000 guilders to kill and drive Native Americans from the area where the town now stands.

“It is ironic that a Town that has a history of killing the local Indigenous population should now claim as a tradition a fake image of those very same people,” Harry Wallace, chief of the Unkechaug Indian Nation, said in a statement on the debate.

Kerry Watcher, president of the Massapequa Board of Education, has pushed back on the mandate and said the state’s effort to remove the mascot does not “advance learning.” She thanked the Trump administration for investigating the matter.