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The California State
Capitol building.
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SACRAMENTO, Calif. California State Assembly's Education
Committee earlier this month unanimously approved a bill
that will protect Native American students' rights to wear
cultural items at graduation.
The bill, proposed by Assemblymember James Ramos (Serrano/Cahuilla
Tribe) in February, will establish a 10-person task force of tribal
representatives from across the state to develop best practices
for protecting students' rights to wear traditional tribal
regalia to school graduation ceremonies. The task force will submit
a report on implementing the law to the Legislature by spring 2023,
the bill reads.
Wearing traditional tribal regalia or recognized items of religious
or cultural significance as an adornment at graduation ceremonies
is a protected civil right under the United States Constitution
and the California Constitution.
Ramos, who is a resident of the San Manuel Indian Reservation and
the first Native American to serve in the California State Assembly,
said in a statement
that, despite existing law, Native students' rights are not being
protected.
... local school officials have raised objections to students
wearing eagle feathers, sashes with basket designs, basket caps
and beaded medallions during graduation ceremonies," Ramos
said.
According to 2010 census data, California is home to the largest
population of Native Americans in the nation, with about 720,000
individuals and more than 150 tribal communities and 109 federally
recognized tribes.
Over 300,000 Native American or Alaska Native students attended
California public schools during the 2019 school year, the Legislature
noted in the bill.
Ramos notes that graduations are a time of celebration, especially
among tribal communities that experience the lowest graduation rates
of any ethnic group.
Our students have a 75.8 percent graduation rate compared
to the 84.3 percent statewide rate," Ramos said. Eagle
feathers and other symbols of Native American significance underscore
not only the personal achievement but also the honor bestowed by
the tribal community and the pride the community shares in the graduates'
achievement."
The bill was sponsored by the ACLU of California, the Yurok Tribe
and the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band.
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