Education Department finds New York agencies ‘violated’ Civil Rights Act with ban on Native American mascots

An investigation by the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) into two New York state agencies has found that both violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act over a ban on Native American-inspired mascots and logos – an issue thrust into the national spotlight because of one Long Island school district.

The Department of Education released a press release of its findings on Friday, just a month after first launching the probe into the New York Department of Education and the New York State Board of Regents.