a racist word for a native american woman The state Natural Resources Agency announced Friday that nearly three dozen geographic features and place names on California land will be removed.
California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a bill into law in 2022 that bans the use of the word “squaw” in place names in the future and gives the agency the authority to use the word “squaw” in place names, including roads, bridges, public buildings and cemeteries. Ordered the renaming of where the word was used. Los Angeles Times Information was given on Friday.
The new names were chosen in consultation with California’s Native American tribes for more than 30 places in 15 counties.
The California Advisory Committee on Geographic Names will work to implement approved replacement names by January 1.
One example is the city of West Sacramento, where local officials worked with the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation to develop two new street names to replace the slur.
The name recommended by the Tribal Council of the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation is “Tebti”, a word and blessing that translates to streams flowing together.
Tribal Chairman Anthony Roberts said, “With continued consultation, tribes can take the lead in eliminating such words from California’s public spaces.”
The full list of California’s new names was not available Friday but will be made public soon, the Natural Resources Agency told The Associated Press in an email.
Assemblyman James C. Ramos, a Democrat from San Bernardino who became California’s first Native American state legislator in 2018, authored the bill.
He is a resident of the San Manuel Indian Reservation and a member of the Serrano/Cahuilla Tribe.
In 2021, a popular ski resort in Northern California changed its name to Palisades Tahoe as part of national efforts to address the history of colonialism and oppression against Native Americans and other people of color.
U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland also moved in 2021 to rename any geographic feature or place name on federal land that used the term, including dozens in California.
(Tags to translate) US News(T) California(T) Native Americans(T) Racism
