California Assembly passes ban on 'Redskins' nickname at high schools

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The "Redskins" nickname is on its way out at the few California high schools that still use it.

The California Assembly on Monday overwhelmingly passed a bill prohibiting use of the name at high schools beginning in 2017. The bill's sponsor, Assemblyman Luis Alejo of Watsonville, hailed its passage by a 57-9 vote.

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“This historic measure is part of a national movement,” Alejo said, via the Sacramento Bee. “For far too long we’ve allowed stereotypes and derogatory terms to become normalized to our younger generations.”

Four public high schools in California still use Redskins as a nickname. The bill, dubbed the California Racial Mascots Act, would prohibit the use of Redskins by public schools beginning Jan. 1 but would allow the schools that currently employ it to phase out their usage. Those schools also would receive financial assistance in changing over uniforms, signage and other branded items to their new nickname.

Gustine High School in Merced County is one of those schools, and it has argued against the bill in a letter to legislators, adding that the matter should be handled locally and not at a state level.

“At no time in the 80 years that Gustine High School has proudly displayed the Redskins mascot has any disparaging or derogatory use of the Redskin moniker taken place,” the letter read in part, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The Bee noted Merced Assemblyman Adam Gray was the lone Democrat to vote against the measure Monday.

The bill must still pass the Senate and be signed by Gov. Jerry Brown to become law. A similar measure passed both houses in 2004 but was vetoed by then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

This attempt at a change comes as part of a nationwide push on the issue that has seen other high schools drop the nickname and continuing pressure on the NFL's Redskins to do the same — a move team owner Dan Snyder has vowed never to make.

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Marc Lancaster is a senior editor at The Sporting News