Democratic Governor of California Gavin Newsom and the Biden administration have pushed for name changes regarding the word “squaw,” but local communities are pushing back.
Last month, the Biden administration announced it had finished taking “squaw” out of the names of federal land, which involved almost 650 locations.
Late last month, Governor Newsom signed AB 2022 into law, which will take the name out of California locations beginning in 2025.
Fresno County’s Board of Supervisors greenlit a resolution officially against the name change of the Squaw Valley community, as they claim that most of the Squaw Valley residents are against changing the name.
Supervisor Steve Brandau said the move is an attempt to tell those in D.C. and the state’s capital of Sacramento that “there’s an awful lot of dissent here in Squaw Valley” with the change in name, according to The Fresno Bee.
Brandau reportedly noted that he’s still not persuaded that the word is offensive, and he is planning to discuss with the county’s legal group about a potential official ballot vote for voters in Squaw Valley to make their voices heard on the change in name.
“Then, we would have probably more legal standing to support the local decision,” he said.
Some people are in favor of changing the name, but others don’t like the idea. All of this was discussed at a recent public commentary session involving people who live in Fresno County, as well as Squaw Valley.
“We’re proud of our community, we’re proud of our community name,” Lonnie Work, a resident of Squaw Valley and chairman of the Save Squaw Valley committee, said during a public discussion.
“Ignorance isn’t an excuse for staying in the same lane,” Fresno County resident Gloria Hernandez said.
The resolution doesn’t actually do anything to stop the renaming process, but it is the official response of the county to the U.S. Board on Geographic Names concerning the shift.
“What’s been lacking really over the course of the last two years is hearing from the community,” Fresno County Supervisor Nathan Magsig said at the time. “I’ve been asking for individuals that have been interested in this name change to start first in the community and listen to residents.”
“The federal government has divided us … and yet we’re powerless to do anything,” Fresno Supervisor Sal Quintero, who did not vote in favor of the resolution, recently said. “We can give them our opinion and our thoughts, but they’ve made their decision.”