But as the Chickasaw Nation member grew up and learned about his Indigenous roots, he came to see the school’s mascot — a stereotypical Native American man wearing a headdress — as problematic.

The Massapequa School District’s mascot is the chief, including a district logo with the letter “M” adorning a Native American headdress. A recent New York Board of Regents policy barred the ...

The full-feathered headdress worn by North American Natives is one of the most recognized of all indigenous peoples' regalia.