THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, JULY 1, 2022 ~ Letter-to-the-Editor ~ Page 5 Reader seeks public comments — pro or con — on her group’s efforts to preserve the Saugus Sachem Dear Editor: My attached article is in response to the eff orts to remove the Saugus Sachem from Saugus High School. I also would like to clarify Ms. Two Trees-McGrath’s native heritage claim. Her father was an Arawak Native of the island of St. Vincent in the Caribbean — not a Native American. There are many of us who know the history of our town and we love, respect, and appreciate our Native American heritage as it is also part of our culture as well. Our Saugus Sachem is the offi cial seal on all our town documents, the Celebration of 1915 was full of references about our Native Americans and the name Sachem appears throughout our town at many diverse levels. This bond between our two cultures goes as far back as 1629 when Native Americans and colonists celebrated their unity all the way back to their beginning. If you would like to express your opinion, pro or con, or join our group to preserve the Saugus Sachem, please email me at jaroszjanice87@gmail.com By Janice K. Jarosz S AUGUS: The town of Saugus has a long and proud identification with Native American culture. It has adopted the term ‘Sachem,’ in meaning respected elder of the tribe and not only as its offi cial town logo, but as the name for its high school athletic teams. Its yearbook is called the Tontoquonian. Everywhere you go even on street signs you see the familiar side-view Native American profi le, complete with head dress. Offi cials see this entirely as a measure of respect and a refl ection of the town’s roots. Native American representatives do not share the same view. This dichotomy of viewpoints came into focus earlier this month. At a meeting of the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association’s sportsmanship committee, Peter Roby of the Northeastern University Center for Sports and Society argued that member schools with Native American nicknames and logos should do away with them. He based his argument on an NCAA edict two years ago that banned off ensive Native American nicknames and logos, yet NCAA schools still sport Native American logos. The MIAA does not feel as if it has the jurisdiction to force schools into changing their names. And, in the case of Saugus, School Superintendent Keith Manville, who is on the committee, makes a distinction between schools with names that would stereotype Native American culture and ones that honor it. But the Massachusetts Center for Native American Awareness (MCNAA) does not make that distinction. And the use of the term “Sachem” is a prime example of this diff erence of opinion. “I remember, says Town Meeting member Thomas Raiche, a senior on the 1974 football team, that when we were playing, people would ask us what a Sachem was, and we did not know. So, we had to do a little research to fi nd out that it means ‘chief.’” Raiche considers that a good thing in that he and his teammates took the time to fi nd out about the teams’ logo. “I never thought of it as derogatory,” Raiche said. Other school administrators share similar views. “It is truly embedded into the culture of the town,” Manville stated. “It isn’t simply a case of ‘here comes the Sachems.’ The cooperation that existed between the settlers and the Native Americans is why the town exists at all. We have tremendous sensitivity to how Native American terms are used,” Manville said. We do not do anything that would demean the Native American culture. Claudia FoxTree, of the MCNAA, however, argues that any reference to Native American culture out of its context is demeaning. “Even what you call ‘positive’ is problematic, she said. “When words are used incorrectly, the original Native American meaning is lost, so it is not a sign of respect. Sachems are respected members of the community,” she said, “and a team by that name is in no way a Sachem. When words like ‘Sachem’ are used out of context, it is off ensive.” Manville argues that this is more than a sports thing. “When we had to decide what the symbol of the town was — when we put up the new red street signs — the chief’s head went up. It is up all over town. If you look at the town seal, there is a Native American on it. We have a mural at Town Hall that commemorates the Native Americans and European colonists who worked together to create Saugus. It is not as if we can just automatically change our names to “Saugus Ironworkers!” Townspeople bring up other arguments. “What about the Winthrop Vikings,” athletic subcommittee member Bill Stewart asks. Are the St. Mary’s Spartans dishonoring Greeks? Tom Raiche mentions another issue. “What about the Salem Witches?” he asks. If we study our history, this is a bad story — religious intolerance — fi nger pointing — ‘The Crucible’ — and all that.” “I think it is a problem when any group is minimized or ridiculed,” FoxTree said. “However, it is much more damaging when the group has been historically oppressed and continues to not have equal representation, nor equal access.” She continues, “For example, how many Native Americans do you see in the roles of sitcom actor, newscaster, athlete, police officer, letter carrier, movie actor, musician on MTV, PRO OR CON | SEE PAGE 7 AUTOTECH $$ CASH FOR YOUR CAR, TRUCK OR SUV! $$ Does not have to be running! GET YOUR VEHICLE SUMMER READY! 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