The Arcadia Unified School District staff held a forum at Arcadia High School’s (AHS) Performing Art Center on Oct. 18, discussing a potential change in the school’s designation, the Apaches. Those in attendance included District head staff such as Superintendent David Vannasdall, members from the Student Council Apache Committee, and different speakers ranging from parents to former and current students, who shared their thoughts on the name change. 

About ten different individuals spoke in front of the forum audience, who generally agreed that the “Apache” should be changed due to its “racist” implementation as the school’s designation a few years after AHS’ founding in 1952. In addition, attire and practices developed by the school community that are intended to “honor” the White Mountain Apache (WMA) tribe were in reality more harmful than helpful.

“Schools are a place of learning, and these mascots are teaching us stereotypical and often insulting images of Native Americans,” stated Mrs. Tracy Perez, a parent of current and former students of AHS who works with Native American groups and serves as a commissioner for Los Angeles County.

While the purpose of the forum itself was not to reach a concrete decision as to whether or not the Apache name should change, it helped shine light on the perspectives of the Arcadia community. A brief speech was given by Superintendent Vannasdall followed by a presentation about the basic history of how the Arcadia Apache was created. Afterwards, each speaker was given five minutes to share their thoughts. Some expressed their discomfort and even anger over the general ignorance that exists within the school over the Apache name and history. Suggestions were also made to educate the student and staff population on the WMA tribe and Native Americans as a whole, while also changing the emblem to something less offensive but still associated with the Apache tribe.

As explained during the presentation, the Arcadia Apache emblem was first accepted in 1958, chosen by the Arcadia community who at the time felt it was a good way to honor Native Americans. While the incentive for this decision was valid, very few people understood the true history and traditions of the WMA tribe. “Apache Joe” served as the school’s mascot, and different uniforms were created based off of what was assumed to be Native American attire. 

The push for change first began in 1997 by Native American activist groups and was reignited in 2020 by AHS alumni. A petition was created, calling for the removal of all names or associations within the school that are tied to the Apache name. 

So far, changes have been made within the school, such as the changing of the school newspaper’s name from The Apache Pow Wow to the The Arcadia Quill and the doing away with the old Apache Princess uniforms for Color Guard. Both of these changes were proposed and carried out by students.

Almost 70 years after it was founded, AHS still carries the Apache emblem. However, the call for change has increased over the years. A ThoughtExchange created for the AHS community allowed students, teachers and parents to voice their opinions about the Apache name to a larger audience. While a concrete decision hasn’t been made to change AHS’ emblem, the awareness and movement to create change and find compromises that began over 20 years ago is once again on the rise.

Live updates of the event can be found on Arcadia Quill‘s Twitter, and a full video of the forum can be found here.

Photo courtesy of AUSD