I-94 Billboard Putting New Focus On Paw Paw Schools Nickname

pawpawbillboard

A billboard urging Paw Paw Public Schools to change the school nickname from “Redskins” is now up on I-94. The sign was paid for by the Michigan Coalition Against Racism in Sports & Media, of which Benjamin Williams is a member.

“This isn’t a snowflake issue, this is a respect thing toward someone who is different than you,” said Williams. He adds the word, which Native Americans consider a racial slur, goes back centuries. “It represents how they referred to our skins when we were turned in for bounties.”

The Paw Paw school board voted against changing the nickname in February 2017. There are just five schools remaining in the state that use the nickname “Redskins,” and 26 districts have gotten rid of the nickname.

Photo courtesy of John McNeill, WKZO AM 590.