The Black River Falls High School Student Senate recently endorsed Wisconsin Senate Bill 132 related to school districts and their use of Native American mascots and/or nicknames. 

The Student Senate operates under a written constitution and according to Article III, Section 5, Clause 2, “The Student Senate may act on issues of concern to students and offer formal resolutions that are forwarded to the Administration for their consideration. Resolutions will be communicated via regular meetings between the Senate leadership and the High School Administration.”

The following is a synopsis of the bill as published by the Legislative Bureau of Wisconsin:  Senate Bill 132 was proposed in April of 2007. Current Wisconsin law prohibits discrimination against pupils on a number of grounds, including race and ancestry.

This bill provides that a school district resident may object to a school board’s use of an ethnic name, nickname, logo, or mascot by filing a complaint with the state superintendent of public instruction. The state superintendent must schedule a hearing on the complaint, at which the school board has the burden of proving by clear and convincing evidence that the use of the ethnic name, nickname, logo, or mascot does not promote discrimination, pupil harassment, or stereotyping.

If the state superintendent finds in favor of the complainant, the state superintendent must order the school board to terminate its use of the ethnic name, nickname, logo, or mascot within 12 months after issuance of the order.

A school board is subject to a forfeiture of not less than $100 nor more than $1,000 for each day that it uses the ethnic name, nickname, logo, or mascot in violation of the order.

The decision of the state superintendent is subject to circuit court review.  92nd Assemblyman Terry Musser is a co-sponsor of the measure. 

According to Rachel Colloton, this year’s Student Senate President, the endorsement of SB 132 came after “a month-long debate on the subject, including an on-line forum that involved a pretty significant number of students.  While we were not unanimous in our endorsement of this, the majority of the Senators felt that we wanted to write to Assemblyman Musser, Senator Vinehout, and Governor Doyle to indicate our support for the measure.”

A full copy of the Student Senate Resolution may be found on the Student Senate website which is available from the high school home page.