Should Fate of Native American Mascots Be Decided By Beacon Hill?

BOSTON — The long-simmering question of whether school districts or the state should determine which sports mascots are acceptable reached a boil on Tuesday, as Beacon Hill lawmakers received an earful of testimony from both Native Americans and non-Native Americans claiming that sports names such as "Redmen" and "Indians" wreak havoc on various individuals' quality of life. Only one non-legislator spoke out against the bill, introduced by state Senator Barbara L'Italien (D-Andover), "an act to

BOSTON — The long-simmering question of whether school districts or the state should determine which sports mascots are acceptable reached a boil on Tuesday, as Beacon Hill lawmakers received an earful of testimony from both Native Americans and non-Native Americans claiming that sports names such as "Redmen" and "Indians" wreak havoc on various individuals' quality of life. Only one non-legislator spoke out against the bill, introduced by state Senator Barbara L'Italien (D-Andover), "an act to…