PARMA, Ohio — According to the National Congress of American Indians, there are 72 school districts and 204 schools with Native American “themed” mascots in Ohio.

After more than a year of debate and community discussions, Parma Senior High School will continue to be known as the Parma “Redmen.”

“I think it just shows a lot of pride that we have for Parma," said Andrew Sakeagak, 17, a junior at Parma High School.

Sakeagak is the hockey team’s goalie, and in addition to his school pride, Sakeagak is also proud of his family’s roots.

“I’m extremely proud that I’m Native American and keeping the family line going," he said.

When the conversation began about possibly changing the school’s mascot, he knew he had to speak up.

“Just because the fact that I’m Native and I don’t see a problem with it being portrayed how it’s portrayed through the Redmen," said Sakeagak.

Since 1936, the district has been home to the Parma Redmen. The district’s alumni association said it wanted an image that represented nobility, loyalty and courage.

“One of the big things that is shown in Native American culture is honor and a lot of that I think is shown with the Parma Redmen," said Sakeagak.

But not everyone agrees.

Parma City Schools Superintendent Dr. Charles Smialek said the murder of George Floyd, the Washington Redskins becoming the Washington Football Team and the Cleveland Indians changing its name to the Cleveland Guardians all sparked the debate on if being known as the Parma Redmen was appropriate.

“It’s a very emotional issue," said Smialek.

Cynthia Connolly, an executive board member with the Lake Erie Native American Council, said Parma's decision is disappointing and discouraging. 

"Really felt like they were just continuing to ignore the fact that hundreds of tribes across the country, dozens if not hundreds of Native American led organizations, both locally, statewide, as well as nationally, have all urged these teams and the schools to change their name,” said Connolly. “And for them to kind of go against that grain, and not kind of, but to exactly go against that grain of what the experts and the professionals are saying that these mascots are harmful, you know, it really feels like this is a missed opportunity and the wrong choice.”

Smialek told Spectrum News that an online survey with more than 2,000 participants, four community meetings via Zoom and meetings with groups of high school students helped provide feedback to assess the right move for the school.

“When we had our meetings, it was really a clear preference to change the name and really move on from what a lot of folks thought was an offensive, racist logo," said Smialek. "When we had our community survey on the other hand, it was completely the other way and it was a very strong sentiment to actually stay with the Redmen logo. So, we really wanted to hear from our students. We thought that that would sort of be a tie-breaking measure.”

Connolly disagreed with how the process was handled.

"That is absolutely the wrong way to go about this process," said Connolly. "You know, the way that we engage with the Cleveland baseball team and the way that a lot of other organizations have done this work is by honestly looking at the research, which I don't believe that they did because if they had listened to, you know, the hundreds of tribes and the dozens of national organizations, including our local ones here, that they would know that, you know, we overwhelmingly agree that these mascots are harmful.

“There is a growing body of scientific research that has proven that this fake Native imagery has a negative impact on our communities, especially Native youth. That includes findings like suicide ideation, low feelings of self-worth, low community worth, and these are all things that we should not be promoting in K-12 schools. If anything, we should be making these environments more welcoming for Natives and non-Natives alike," said Connolly.

Students, including Sakeagak, expressed strongly their desire to keep the logo. He has attended Parma school since second grade and he said his family never thought the mascot was offensive.

“I think it should stay just because of the fact we don’t appropriate it or anything like that and we bring a positive light to the Native culture,” said Sakeagak.

The community-driven decision to keep the Redmen mascot comes from a predominately white area.

According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau in 2020, Parma's population is 90.2% white, 3.6% Black, 0.2% American Indian and Alaskan Native, 2% Asian, 2.8% identified as more races and ​5.7% Hispanic or Latino.

In August, Ohio House of Representatives members Adam Miller (D-Columbus) and Jessica E. Miranda (D-Forest Park) introduced a resolution to encourage "Ohio’s schools to retire the use of Native American mascots and to engage Native American groups as part of that process."

Later that month, the school board at Cuyahoga Heights School District voted to retire the Redskins mascot. 

Connolly said studies show Native mascots create apathy toward the issues facing Native Americans.

"Right now, Native mascots are part of a larger problem of how Native people are represented in society,” said Connolly. “We're more often than not represented as feathered and leathered, stuck in historical past, you know, film and media and mascots all do this. And rarely are we portrayed as your neighbors, your co-workers, your classmates, and that is part of a larger problem. In fact, we know that from some studies that 87% of K-12 schools fail to talk about Native Americans after the year 1900. 87 percent.

“So, when we have a whole group of people, mostly non-Natives, that have zero concept of who we are as a modern people, they were least likely to support our modern like, you know, socio-economic issues like missing and murdered indigenous women.”

Dr. Smialek said it’s not necessarily a permanent decision, but for now the Redmen will carry on its legacy in Parma.