Over the last year, a committee of parents, students and staff have been working with members of the Yakama Nation and a professor from Heritage University regarding our mascot name (Warriors) and our Native American imagery (HS Crest, HS Gym murals, District Logo, Athletic uniforms, and totem pole). The new state law HB 1356 requires us to work with our local tribes (Yakama Nation) to help evaluate our imagery depicting Native Americans, and our mascot, to make sure it is representative (and not offensive) of our local tribes. The law states we are to work collaboratively on gaining their approval that will honor and represent Native American culture of this region and avoid any inappropriate use.
We have learned so much from this collaborative process with our committee and tribal representatives. The goal of the law is to ensure that we avoid racially derogatory or discriminatory school mascots, logos, or team names in public schools.
Specifically, we are now aware that some of our images and (historical) fan behavior have been, or may have the potential to be, offensive to Native American communities. The Yakama Nation has informed us that our current images do not represent our local tribes but tribes of other regions of the country or the State.
We understand there are many proud community traditions surrounding the Warrior name and our Native themes that affect not only current students but many generations of past families as well. In honoring our past along with our indigenous neighbors, we are working towards new concepts and images of what it means to be a warrior in our community. Our goal as a committee is to seek approval for the “Warrior” name to remain, and to see what current imagery we can adjust to better represent our Yakama Nation
We look forward to working with our community and revitalizing the Warrior mascot into something we can use as an icon to represent our unique community into something we can all be proud of! Undoubtedly updating our logo and imagery will be a major shift for our district. However, it is reassuring to observe other districts, teams (including professional sports teams) successfully navigate a similar process in order to honor their indigenous neighbors.
Your support is welcome to help us as we develop/update images and logos that respect and honor the Cle Elum-Roslyn Warriors. As the committee nears our deadline of January 1st, 2023, we will be sharing designs with the community and asking for community input. The Cle Elum-Roslyn School Board will then take this input, and make a final decision. In the meantime, if you would like to follow the work of the committee, please visit the Warrior Mascot webpage at: https://www.cersd.org/o/cerhs/page/warrior-mascot-committee-work
Go Warriors!