ADL Sends letter to Superintendent of Coachella Valley Unified School District

  • November 11, 2013

On November 8, ADL sent a letter to Coachella Valley Unified School District about Coachella Valley High School’s use of the mascot, “Arabs.”  In light of ADL’s continuing mission to fight “secure justice and fair treatment” to all, ADL encouraged the Board of the school district to change the name of the school mascot to one that does not rely on the ethnicity of a group of people.

“While the name ‘Arabs’ is not in any way derisive on its own (and, we are confident, was not chosen with any intended ill will), educational institutions have a responsibility to be sensitive to not advancing stereotypes that can lead to prejudice, bigotry and discrimination,” wrote Regional Director Amanda Susskind. “The caricatures of the Arab mascot may evoke ‘fun’ to some, but to others they are offensive and hurtful. Tradition matters, but tradition should not justify the perpetuation of negative stereotypes.”