A Native American group fighting for schools such as Massapequa High on Long Island to keep their indigenous mascots says it is prepared to take its case to the US Supreme Court.
“We’re moving ahead full steam,” Native American Guardians Association lawyer Chap Petersen told The Post — calling New York’s ban on such mascots “the dumbest law of all time.
“This is a case which begs for a determination by the US Supreme Court,” Petersen said.
NAGA had its lawsuit against the New York State Board of Regents’ controversial 2023 prohibition dismissed in November but has recently filed an appeal with the second circuit court, vowing to continue its legal battle at all costs.
“This is a racially discriminatory policy — it violates the 14th Amendment,” Peterson said, referring to the US Constitution protection that says, “No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States.”
“It’s also a restriction on freedom of speech, which violates the First Amendment,” the lawyer said.
“I would call on Governor Hochul to just step back and tell the Board of Regents to stand down. This is one of the stupidest policies. It’s not benefiting anybody,” he said.
Petersen added that, “No ruling in this case matters until we get to the US Supreme Court.
“This Supreme Court has been so solid on this idea that there is no concept of good discrimination,” he said.
“There’s no concept where white liberal people basically decide what’s good or what’s bad for certain groups of people and classify them in that respect. That will not stand up with this supreme court.”
NAGA, whose members joined US Secretary of Education Linda McMahon at Massapequa High School in May, had filed a request for a preliminary injunction against the regents board in court in the summer.
Massapequa’s name is of Native American origin, as are those of several other areas on Long Island, thanks to the region’s earliest settlers.
It was around the same time that the group entered into a contract with the Massapequa School District to provide Native American curriculum to its students.
NAGA, in arguing against the district’s Native American mascot ban, also claimed that the prohibition interfered with its right to claim the imagery as its own through a contract with Massapequa.
Federal Judge Sanket Bulsara shot down that position in the fall.
“NAGA has no right to the Chiefs mascot. It does not own it or have a trademark on it,” he wrote in court papers.
“NAGA has no greater right to license the Chiefs mascot than a random member of the public.”
But Bulsara also railed against the logo ban itself, writing that it “may have serious constitutional defects.
“It appears to enact a legal classification based on race or ancestry, which subjects it to the most demanding form of judicial scrutiny,” the judge wrote.
One of Petersen’s points on freedom of speech was also addressed in the November ruling.
“The law may also abridge the First Amendment free speech rights of Massapequa School Board members and District employees,” Bulsara said.
“These difficult questions, however, are not the subject of this opinion,” he added.
Petersen said Bulsara’s stance “has basically set the table for us to take this to the next level.”
Although the judge’s ruling went against NAGA, it did allow individual plaintiffs to continue legal action against New York.
Petersen argued that there is a double standard when it comes to team names such as the Vikings and the Yankees, which are socially acceptable while the Chiefs are not in the Empire State.
He laughed at the fact that New York state government officially has a “chief of staff.”
“The Kansas City Chiefs have been around for 60-some years. I don’t think anyone’s claiming that they’re causing anybody emotional trauma — maybe their fan base this year,” he said jokingly.
“But the bottom line is, this is just the dumbest law of all time.”
