Maulian Dana

On March 16, 2021, Maulian Dana offered this statement to the Cambridge Central School Board in regards to their impending vote about retiring it's Indian mascot.

"It is an honor for me to be able to offer my perspective as an Indigenous women, activist, and tribal leader as your community seeks to examine Indian mascot use in schools.

You will find a lot of information on this topic that is based in opinion and emotion. While these are important, I would bring to your attention that all fact-based research and official published findings call for the removal of Indian mascots. The lived experiences and testimonials from Indigenous people that have suffered from racism, discrimination, low self-esteem and mental health issues, addiction and harmful coping behavior, all support the factual findings. I would urge you to read the reports of the American Psychological Association, Fryberg Report, National Congress of American Indians, and United Southern and Eastern Tribes.

My name is Maulian Dana and I am a citizen of the Penobscot Nation located in Maine. I serve as a government representative for the tribe and work with the state legislature as well as in the federal arena. I advocate for equal rights, recognition of our inherent tribal sovereignty, clean climate, racial and social equity, and many other areas of concern for the tribe. One highlight of the time I have served in this role is the law that Maine passed in 2019 banning the use of Indian mascots in schools and universities. I brought an activism backgroud to my work on this bill, beginning my work speaking for their removal when I was a teenager.

Starting at age 15 I started participating in removal efforts in Maine schools. My moment that sparked my anger and action was when I watched a high school basketball game with two teams having Indian mascots. The fans, cheerleaders, band, and players for both teams were acting out their mascots in ways that caused me pain, anger, fear, and confusion. They had fake feathers and headdresses, fake warpaint, they chanted and dressed in ways that poked fun at my culture. At my family. At my traditions. At my very existence. Being an Indigenous person was something that I had been taught to value and cherish as a sacred part of me. It was something that gave me comfort and grounded me in a world that could be scary and cruel. Even at that young age I knew that my identity was something that had been fiercely protected by my ancestors as they were almost exterminated in their homelands.

What I saw on the basketball court was not at all who I was. It made me feel sick, small, invisible, dehumanized, insulted, but most of all it made me feel sad. I was fortunate to have supportive adults in my life that not only guided me through these feelings but also helped me find my voice to affect change.

Maine had around 30 schools that changed their Indian mascots over the course of the last 20 years or so. The most recent was Skowhegan High School that retired their Indian mascot in 2019 just a few months before the bill was signed into law. The cleansing of these mascots from our schools as well as the law making the changes permanent was the result of a collaboration between tribal leaders and citizens, or neighbors and friends, allies, and policy/law makers. We based a lot of the work around education and communication. When people can come together around shared humanity that is what changes hearts and minds. We won’t always agree but we can respect and honor one another. If I tell you something hurts me, you don’t get to decide that it doesn’t.

We were also visited by the Native American Guardians Association (NAGA) during the last few months before the Skowhegan school board voted to remove their Indian mascot. They are a group of people who claim to be Indigenous and they are paid to speak against mascot removal. They don’t speak for any actual tribal governments, organizations, or collectives. They are easily discredited and make their money from people who want to keep racist mascots. They claim to want to educate but base their arguments in opinions from a very small minority of people who want to keep these mascots. They are extremely suspect and have never actually persuaded anyone to keep an Indian mascot. Their visit to Maine was a waste of time and money. I would encourage anyone in your community to seek out real facts and information from legitimate sources and to not fall for this small group of individuals who are perpetuating harm and hatred.

It is a fact that Indian mascots cause harm, racist attitudes and behaviors, racial inequity, and that stereotypes and symbols can replace actual groups of people. When we are not seem as humans we are treated as less than humans. We often hear that we must have “bigger things to worry about” and those things are part of the oppression, trauma, and hatred that Indian mascots are both products and producers of. We are a living, breathing, ever changing, resilient and proud people. We are not something you can wear like a costume. We are not something you can become by wearing a jersey or a fake feather. You can’t embrace the good parts about our identity but not live with the whole experience and legacy of colonization and attempted genocide that we live with each day. “Indian” can never be a something I take on and off. It is who I am.

Maine is now a safer and more inclusive place for my children as they enter high school over the next couple of years. I am truly honored by the fact that so many people in my state have acknowledged my humanity and right to an education, livelihood, and statewide community that is not tainted by these outdated mascots. We have a long way to go, but I feel that I am seen and heard in a clearer and more equitable way because of our mascot law.

It is never my hope to pass judgment or cause defensiveness. I have dedicated much of my life thus far to advocating for fair treatment of my people. I have found the best way to do that is by being honest, genuine, and speaking as a human being to other human beings. I thank you for taking the time to read one snapshot into my thoughts on this and I am happy to help as much as I can as your community grapples with these hard discussions and lasting changes. Progress can cause discomfort as we examine the systems we have been entrenched in and possibly benefiting from. Remember, when a voice you have never heard has something to tell you, there is a reason they could never reach your ears before now. Be the reason they keep talking. It will help us all do better and be better for the next generation.

Kci Woliwoni (thank you very much)"