President Donald Trump says Massapequa school district should keep its mascot, team name

The Massapequa High School in Massapequa, May, 2023. Credit: Newsday/Steve Pfost

By John Asbury and Gregg Sarrajohn.asbury@newsday.com,gregg.sarra@newsday.comApril 21, 2025

President Donald Trump said Monday that the Massapequa school district should be allowed to keep its name and logo.

Trump posted on Truth Social that he has asked U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon to intervene in defense of the district, which has been fighting to retain its Chiefs name and logo, after New York State banned Native American mascots and team names in public schools.

"Forcing them to change the name, after all these years, is ridiculous and in, actuality, an affront to our great Indian population," Trump said in the Monday post. "The school board, and virtually everyone in the area, are demanding the name be kept."

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By John Asbury and Gregg Sarra

john.asbury@newsday.com,gregg.sarra@newsday.com

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California. Gregg Sarra is Newsday's high school sports editor and has been on the beat since the mid-1980s.

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