THERMAL, Calif. (AP) – A Southern California high school has retired a controversial Arab mascot.
The bearded, snarling mascot with a large hooked nose who wears a head scarf did not appear at Coachella Valley High School’s season opening football game on Friday. A belly-dancing genie that often appears with the mascot during halftime was also retired.
The Desert Sun reports (http://desert.sn/1B2qPVZ ) the change was among the steps the Coachella Valley Unified School District is taking to give the mascot a makeover.
The Arab mascot has existed since the 1920s to recognize the desert region’s reliance on date farming, a traditionally Middle Eastern crop. Over the years, the mascot evolved from a turban-wearing horseman carrying a lance to a standing figure with a scowl and a traditional head covering.
It came under fire last November when the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee sent a letter to the school district complaining that the mascot was stereotypical.