PAW PAW, MI (WKZO AM/FM) — The debate over the Paw Paw Redskins mascot continues.
A meeting was held Tuesday evening to gather more public opinions on the ongoing controversy.
Now, the Superintendent of Paw Paw Public Schools Rick Reo tells WWMT that at the next school board meeting he plans to recommend that the Redskins mascot be removed at the end of this school year.
Many have been arguing that the Redskins name is racist, while others say it’s part of their school history.
Rio says he will bring up the issue next Monday, but the board will have to make the final decision.
The Redskins name has sparked controversy for several years.
Back in 2017, the Paw Paw School Board voted to reinstate the Redskins mascot at all schools in the district and said they would not address the matter again “until a single tax dollar is withheld.”
In 2018, a billboard paid for by the Michigan Coalition against Racism in Sports and Media was put up along I-94, defining Redskins as a “disparaging and offensive racial slur.” Also that year, the ACLU urged the Walmart in Paw Paw to end the sale of sports wear and other items bearing the Redskins logo.
And in December of 2019 The U.S. Department of Education for Civil Rights launched a formal investigation after the ACLU filed a complaint against Paw Paw Public Schools, claiming that a “racially hostile environment” exists in the district.
It’s likely the issue will be brought to the board once again, this time through the Superintendent’s recommendation.
